Significant reduction recorded in incidents of crop residue: Minister

 
By Our Staff Reporter Dr Ansab Ali

LAHORE: A high-level meeting regarding the Smog Control Program was held in Lahore under the chairmanship of the Minister for Agriculture Punjab, Syed Ashiq Hussain Kirmani. The meeting was attended by Secretary Agriculture Punjab Iftikhar Ali Sahoo, Secretary Environment Protection Salwat Saeed, Special Secretary Agriculture Agha Nabeel Akhtar, Additional Secretary Agriculture (Task Force Punjab) Muhammad Shabbir Ahmad Khan, Additional Secretary Agriculture (Planning) Aamir Shehzad Kung, Directors General Agriculture Naveed Asmat Kahloon, Chaudhry Abdul Hameed, Engineer Sajid Naseer, Director General Environment Protection Department Imran Hamid Sheikh, and other senior officers.
Addressing the meeting, Minister for Agriculture Punjab Syed Ashiq Hussain Kirmani stated that the Departments of Agriculture and Environment Protection are jointly taking practical measures to control smog.
He said that effective steps are being taken to promote the use of modern machinery for paddy harvesting. Facilities are being provided to service providers for the collection of crop residues and the widespread use of baler machines.
Syed Ashiq Hussain Kirmani further said that a three-year program will be formulated for the permanent solution to smog.
He noted that a significant reduction has been recorded in incidents of crop residue burning, which is a positive development. The Minister added that due to the sound strategy of the Chief Minister Punjab, a sense of responsibility among farmers is increasing, which will help reduce the effects of smog.
On this occasion, Secretary Agriculture Punjab Iftikhar Ali Sahoo said that better results will be achieved in the smog control campaign through coordination between the Departments of Agriculture and Environment Protection. He informed that super seeders are being provided on a priority basis around the motorway areas to further reduce air pollution.
Meanwhile, Secretary Environment Protection Salwat Saeed stated that the Department of Agriculture has provided exemplary cooperation in the Smog Mitigation Action Plan, which is yielding tangible results.

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