Renowned scientists and academicians Tuesday warned of food-insecurity, hunger and starvation if the research land of National Agricultural Research Center (NARC) was converted into housing society as proposed by Capital Development Authority (CDA).
The scientists and academicians who gathered at PARC headquarter to discuss the pros and cons of the CDA proposal for converting research land into a housing society demanded the government to reject the summary for larger national interest.
The Standing Committee on Cabinet is scheduled to meet Thursday, August 6 to discuss the CDA proposal which already has stirred a severe reaction from all the segments of society including scientists, parliamentarians, educationists, businessmen, farmer associations and civil society.
“Keeping in view the importance of NARC for research and agriculture development, the government must immediately reject the CDA summary,” they said while attending a meeting here at the headquarters of Pakistan agricultural Research Council (PARC).
The meeting was chaired by PARC Chairman, Dr. Iftikhar Ahmad and among others, representatives of universities, research organizations, farmer associations and civil society participated in the meeting.
Prominent among the participants included Former Chairman of the Council and Reactor National University of Computer and Emerging Sciences (FAST-NU) Dr. Amir Muhammad, Forman PARC Chairman, Dr. Muhammad Afzal, Dr. Waqar Malik, Haleem-ul-Hasnain, Kausar Abdullah, President PARC Scientists Association, Dr Altaf Sher, General Secretary PARSA, Azizullah Shah and Director PARC Public Relations, Sardar Ghulam Mustafa.
Speaking on the occasion, Former Chairman PARC and Reactor National University of Computer and Emerging Sciences (FAST-NU), Dr. Amir Muhammad said that country’s survival was linked with agriculture sector and this sector could not progress without research and development.
He said that the establishment of a housing society on research land is tantamount to the destruction of the whole agriculture sector adding that this ill-thought decision would lead to starvation and hunger.
He urged the parliamentarians to play their role and save the agriculture sector from becoming the victim of land mafia adding that NARC was the symbol of federation so it should remain at the existing place.
Other participants of the meeting also strongly opposed the CDA proposal and said that it was up to government now whether to lead the country towards food security or build housing societies amid starvation.
