HYDERABAD, Mar 10 (APP):Speakers at an awareness seminar emphasized the need of providing training on modern lines to the agricultural labour force for mango plantations so that healthy plants could enhance mango production and improve the socio-economic condition of the peasants.
The speakers emphasized this while addressing the awareness seminar on Epicotyls grafting: an efficient propagation method in mango, organized by the Horticulture Department of Sindh Agriculture University Tando Jam on Friday.
The awareness seminar was part of the advice of the Horticulture Department of the university which introduced modern technology of “short period mango transplanting” and advised the farmers to adopt this technology to save time and money by developing disease-free mango plant nurseries.
The speakers also suggested joint research for the availability of climate-tolerant plants and also linkages among farmers, industry and academia to modernize the horticulture sector.
The expert and professor of the department of Horticulture Dr. Noorunisa Memon, while addressing the participants, said that a disease-free nursery for mango orchards has now become a challenge so there is a need to work on disease-free plants.
The department has introduced modern technology of transplanting under which after planting mango stone for the new plant, it will be possible to transplant other varieties in a native plant during its one-month growing period, Dr. Noorunisa Memon informed and added that under this new technology, better production results will be achieved with reduction of time and costs of the farmers.
The Vice Chancellor of Sindh Agriculture University Dr. Fateh Marri while speaking on the occasion praised the research efforts of Dr. Noorunisa Memon and her student Muzamil Farooq Jamali and said that a lot of positive development in agriculture is being witnessed according to the required standards of the domestic and global market.
He said that academia, research and industry should have formulated a road map for more development and research in the agriculture sector according to the international market and climatic conditions. Progressive farmers and agro-based industry should also supervise internship opportunities for university graduates to implement modern agricultural technology, he added.
Progressive farmer and Shah, Senior Vice President of Sindh Abadgar Board Syed Mahmood Nawaz Shah said that Sindh Agriculture University has introduced modern academic and research methods in a short period of time and created a trend of modern academic and research among students.
The Executive Director of Horticulture Research Institute Mirpurkhas Mukhtiar Ahmed Channa said that there has been a decrease in fruit nurseries in Sindh and mango plantations are being cut based on various reasons, He said due to recent floods, the mango orchards suffered lot of damages, but some of the varieties have proved to be tolerant of salinity in water and other effects.
During the question and answer session, the participants said that the mangoes of Sindh have a business of billions of rupees through local and international market and also fulfill the needs of the industry for by-products, therefore, there is a need to train the manpower involved from plantation to market and export.
Among others, the Dean CPD Prof. Dr. Inayatullah Rajpar, Chairperson of Horticulture Department Dr. Saba Ambreen Memon, Dr. Tanveer Fatima Miano, progressive farmers Junaid Hayder Shah and Ghulam Sarwer Panhwer also attended the awareness seminar.
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