FAISALABAD, Nov 20:
The Nuclear Institute for Agriculture and Biology (NIAB), a premier agricultural research centre of the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC), organised a national field day on Thursday to promote high-value oilseed crops—especially castor bean and sesame.
PAEC Member (Science) Dr. Shakeel Abbas Rofi, who served as chief guest, highlighted the organisation’s wide-ranging contributions to the country’s socioeconomic development through peaceful applications of nuclear technology. He noted that PAEC’s four agricultural research centres continue to play a vital role in strengthening national food security.
Dr. Rofi said PAEC has been working to advance sustainable development goals in health, agriculture, energy and human resource development. He pointed out that PAEC’s network of Atomic Energy Cancer Hospitals provides diagnostic and treatment services to a large number of cancer patients nationwide with support from radio-pharmaceutical kits and isotopes produced at PINSTECH.
He added that institutions such as PIEAS, KINPOE and CHASCENT are producing highly trained scientific and technical manpower for national organisations. He also highlighted that PAEC’s six nuclear power plants are generating 3,530MW of clean, reliable and cost-effective electricity for the national grid.
Emphasising the importance of ethical practices, Dr. Rofi urged farmers to avoid harmful methods—such as the use of steroids in livestock—and called for collective efforts to prevent food adulteration. He said achieving self-sufficiency in agriculture requires strong collaboration between farmers and research institutions like NIAB.
Earlier, PAEC DG (Agri & Biotech) Prof. Dr. M. Yusouf Saleem commended NIAB for organising the event. NIAB Director Dr. Uzma Maqbool briefed participants on the institute’s research strengths and its technology-transfer efforts to promote castor bean and sesame.
Researchers, progressive farmers, seed companies, industry representatives, exporters and academicians from across the country attended the field day. NIAB scientists showcased climate-smart, high-yielding and short-duration varieties including NIAB Gold, NIAB Spineless, and NIAB Castor-2023.
Pre-basic seeds of NIAB’s castor and sesame varieties were distributed among progressive farmers. Castor bean is widely used in industrial, medicinal and biofuel applications, while sesame continues to see growing demand due to its high oil content and strong export potential.
