ISLAMABAD, Jan 6: Alarmed by the worst human catastrophe in several South and South East Asian countries due to tsunami, the government has decided to carry out an exercise to evolve an early warning system to pre-empt such disasters to save lives and properties of a large number of people living in coastal cities.

Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz, who presided over a high-level meeting on the ports and shipping sector on Thursday, directed the ministry of science and technology to task the Institute of Oceanology to explore possibility of setting up an early warning system for pre-empting tsunami-like disasters in future.

A committee was formed under the chairmanship of minister for science and technology to deliberate upon this issue. The committee will also nominate representatives from governments of Sindh and Balochistan, the ministry of defence and the KPT.

The prime minister also reviewed the bio-safety guidelines for agriculture and pharmaceutical sectors in two separate meetings. The prime minister directed the Karachi Port Trust authorities to accelerate their efforts to provide maximum clearance facilities at the port.

The streamlining of clearance facilities, the prime minister noted, was necessary in view of the setting up of proposed 'textile city' in Karachi.

The prime minister directed the ministry of food and agriculture to adopt bio-safety measures in the agriculture sector to grow disease-free crops and boost the farm production.

The meeting was informed that bio-safety measures had been adopted in most countries of the world. Countries like China, Egypt, Argentina, India and Malaysia had already adopted such measures to boost their agriculture production, the prime minister was told.

The prime minister directed that the ministry of environment should hold an international seminar in the second quarter of the current year to discuss the issue in details and crate public awareness. Environment Minister Tahir Iqbal, Health Minister Mohammad Nasir Khan and other officials concerned also attended the meeting.