Some 12 centers have been set up in four districts of Rawalpindi division – Rawalpindi, Jhelum, Chakwal and Attock – for the procurement of 5,000 metric tones wheat which would be purchased from the farmers. Commissioner Rawalpindi Division Amdad Ullah Bosal told that food department Rawalpindi would procure wheat on subsidized rate of Rs 1,050 per 40 kilograms on wheat purchase centers set up for this purpose.
In addition to this Rs 7.50 would also be paid to the farmers as delivery charges on 100 KG wheat. The empty bags (bardana) would be distributed among the farmers at these centers from May 1 and the procurement of wheat would be started from May 5. Bardana for upto 50 bags could be obtained on personal guarantee and this would be given on “first come, first serve†basis, he said.
He informed that the representatives of DCO Rawalpindi would also be present on wheat procurement centers to look after the procurement process and to facilitate the farmers.
He said that procurement process of wheat would be completed in a transparent manner in accordance with the policy of the Punjab Government. The complaints of the farmers in this connection would be addressed at the spot by a committee which would also have the representatives of the farmers, he added. The farmers can contact ADC Rawalpindi and Deputy Director Food Rawalpindi in case of any complaint on a Toll Free number 0800-13535. He said that the procurement centers for district Rawalpindi have been set up in tehsil Gujar Khan and tehsil Taxila while the focal persons for these centers would be Assistant Commissioners (ACs).
A comprehensive plan in this regard has been formulated while formation of monitoring committees at district level is aimed at providing the farmers all possible facilities and to make all the process transparent.
He informed that the government has set 1000 metric tones target for Rawalpindi district. He said that the wheat growers would be provided all possible facilities with full payment of the support price of their produce.
First trail of ‘heart shrinking’ likely soon: The first trial in humans using electricity to shrink the heart of patients suffering from heart failure is about to start.
The technique involves electrically stimulating nerves leading up to the heart, with the hope it will reduce and size and improve life expectancy, The Telegraph newspaper reported.
It has already been trialled on rats and dogs, who were found to have been kept alive longer. The first patient will be operated on next week by surgeons at Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital and The Royal Liverpool University Hospital.
Heart failure affects nearly one million people in the UK and can be the result of high blood pressure, dead heart muscle after a heart attack, or a genetic condition. They will fit a device similar to a pacemaker to the vagus nerve which runs to the heart. Surgeons said the electrical stimulation should “protect the heart” from the effects of the hormone adrenaline.
Dr Jay Wright, a consultant cardiologist at Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital, told the BBC: “We’re hoping it will shrink the heart, but it might not be to normal size.” He said shrinkage “would lead to improvement in symptoms – we know that the bigger the heart the worse the symptoms”. Nearly 100 patients will take part in the trial at 30 hospitals around the world. The first will be Carl Jordan, who used to be a paramedic. He has had several heart attacks which have damaged his heart, causing it to become enlarged.
He said: “Being the first person to have this device implanted in Liverpool was a huge decision. “My quality of life at the moment is not great, because of the restrictions my condition has imposed on me, especially the breathing problem, as some days this is quite severe and getting worse.
“Another factor is I have a young family who, although I am the one with the illness, they too are living with it and see every day what it can do to me, so hopefully it will improve my quality of life as well as the lives of others.”
