HYDERABAD: Agricu­lture and soil experts have expressed fear that increasing salinity in soil may pose serious threat to food security as the menace is having negative impact on farmland and agricultural productivity in Pakistan.

They were speaking at a seminar on ‘Halt soil salinization, boost soil productivity’ held to mark the World Soil Day at Sindh Agriculture University (SAU), Tandojam, on Monday.

The moot was organised in collaboration with Soil Science Society of Pakistan, Soil Science Department and Farm Advisory Centre (FFC).

SAU vice chancellor Dr Fateh Marri said that climate change, poor quality of groundwater in agricultural land and seawater intrusion were main causes for the increasing salinity.

He announced establishment of a bio-saline agriculture centre in the university and said that with focus on reducing soil’s salinity, research on crop cultivation on saline affected lands should be intensified.

Dr Inayatullah Rajpar, chairman of the Depart­ment of Soil Science, said that agricultural land in Sindh was affected by salinity but no survey for gauging the extent of salinity ahd been conducted in the province for a long time. Currently, salinity affected 6.3 million hectares of land, he said.

Published in Dawn, December 8th, 2021