PESHAWAR, July 27: NWFP Governor Syed Iftikhar Hussain Shah has urged the scientists and agriculturists to develop a system aimed at enhancing crop production and meeting the challenges of food requirements.

Speaking at the concluding ceremony of “National workshop on Poverty Alleviation,” jointly organized by the NWFP Agricultural University Teachers Association and Agricultural Scientists Association at Bara Gali Summer Camp of Peshawar University on Saturday, the governor said the government had launched a number of projects with special focus on installation of tubewells, construction of small dams, provision of loans for small farmers which would start bearing fruits in near future.

At the same time, he said, it was also necessary that the scientists should corroborate the planning and policies of the government devotedly and honestly. Unfortunately, he said, billions of people around the world were living below the level of poverty and majority of them live in Africa and Asia, specially the sub-continent.

The governor said a vast majority of poor masses involved in the agriculture sector look up to the government and agriculture scientists for timely supply of inputs specially high-yielding seeds and integrated pest management programme coupled with planned nutrition system.

Besides this, the governor said, problem of drought particularly in the rural areas where majority of poors live either as tenant or farmer is also posing a serious challenge.

Similarly, he said, loss of water and fertile soil had also become uncontrollable mainly due to lack of scientific management of these areas.

The governor invited the attention of the scientists towards the mismanagement of the forest resources which, he added, had been causing colossal losses to the agricultural system and resulting in silting up of water reservoir at an alarming rate.

The problem of poverty, he said , however, had to be addressed in line with the aforesaid realities. For this purpose, the governor stressed the need for effective implementation of development programmes, efficient utilization of human and natural resources, industrialization and most importantly by developing sustainable agricultural system. As for application of technologies, the governor stressed the need for making multi-disciplinary efforts to achieve the desired goal.

Appreciating the role of the teachers association in this connection, the governor described the holding of workshop a right step in the right direction and at the right time. In fact, he said, poverty was a very crucial problem and the scientists should be made alert towards their responsibilities.

About provision of suitable site for the establishment of a summer campus of the university, he said he would look into the matter seriously.—PPI