LAHORE, Jan 9: The failure of the government to approve bio-safety guidelines is costing billions of rupees a year, Dr Kausar Abdullah Malik, a member of the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission, said here on Wednesday.

Speaking at a seminar on biotechnology, he said if action was not taken urgently, the cumulative loss might multiply.

The guidelines, he said, were finalized almost a year ago after extensive interaction with all objectors — including various non-government organizations, a United Nations team and the environmentalists. But they were still lying with the Ministry of Environment for reasons best known to it.

Pakistan, he said, had belatedly realized the importance of information technology, and was now trying to catch up with the region. Explaining the magnitude of benefits, he said, the technology could save up to a third of the Rs8 billion currently spent on pesticides for the cotton crop alone.

Hitherto, he said, the public sector was the lone investor in biotechnology. As far as quality of equipment and manpower was concerned, he sad, it was second to none.

But, he added, public sector had its limits and could not take research beyond a certain point. Additional investment and inspiration, which only the private sector could provide, was necessary for continuous growth.

Dr Anwar Nasim, the COMSTECH science advisor, said that official reluctance to enact the Plant Variety Protection Act had hobbled the growth in the field. Without it, he said, the seed industry, so vital for better crop yields, could not improve. Developing a new variety of seed, he said, required an investment of millions of rupee and patient nurturing for years. Nobody will develop new varieties unless assured of the right to benefit from it.

According to the World Trade Organization, he said, Pakistan had to enact the law by the end of 2002. Failure to do so would attract punitive measures from other countries. Yet, he said, the government was sitting on the legislation.

Dr Yousuf Zafar of the National Institute for Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering claimed that commercialization of agriculture was necessary for its growth. Excuses like the fear of multinationals, he said, did not hold ground. If multinationals could be allowed in other fields, even mineral water, why could they not be allowed to invest in biotechnology. If allowed, he said, they could benefit millions of people. But, he concluded, there could be no commercialization until the government approved policy guidelines in this regard. The guidelines, prepared by scientists, he claimed addressed the fears of all stake-holders.