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Wednesday, November 25, 2009, Zil`Hajj 07, 1430

CEMB’s two Bt Cotton varieties approved

Lahore—National Bio-safety Committee, Pakistan Environment Protection Agency, Ministry of Environment in its 7th meeting approved two varieties of Bt. Cotton. These varieties containing traits of insect resistance have been developed after several-year thorough research by Centre of Excellence in Molecular Biology (CEMB), said Punjab University spokesman here Tuesday. Prof. Dr. Tayyab Husnain of the CEMB presented the case before the committee, which approved the two cotton varieties with a lot of appreciation and pride.

For the first time in Pakistan, genetically modified plant varieties are developed indigenously and approved by Government of Pakistan. CEMB-01 variety contains single gene, while CEMB-02 contains double Bt genes which gives excellent protection against lepidopteran insects. These varieties would be available during next cultivation season after approval of Punjab Seed Council, whose meeting is scheduled in February, 2010, he added. The PU Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Mujahid Kamran and CEMB Director Dr Amin Athar congratulated the CEMB faculty members and especially those scholars, who worked on this project.

Meanwhile, the spokesman clarified a news item published in a section of press regarding a hunger strike of five to six IJT activists outside Lahore Press Club. He said these activists had been expelled due to their involvement in illegal activities on the campus and they had been tried before the Disciplinary Action Committee comprising senior most teachers of the university. He said the students who were expelled included those involved in life attempt on Law College students as they had opened fire on the innocent students sleeping in their hostels in December 2008. Some of them thrashed their colleagues in Economics Department and broke panes of their car.

Some others taking law in their hands kidnapped a security guard along with his gun outside Centre for Solid State Physics. These activists also thrashed security guards as they demanded their identity cards at an entry gate. He said the administration received complaints from students, teachers and employees against this group and forwarded their cases to the disciplinary action committee.— APP

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