March 2, 2011

Pakistani poultry institute worries over privatisation

Pakistan's Poultry Research and Development Institute is concerned over the proposed privatisation of the Poultry Research Institute and poultry farms belonging to the provincial government in Punjab.

The association of the institute is carrying out protest demonstrations such as strikes against the privatisation proposal across the province.

"These institutions are not only the source of livelihood for hundreds of families, but they also serve the farming community," said Dr Naveed Ahmad, Assistant Director of Poultry Research Institution in Rawalpindi.

He said that the provincial government has moved a summary to the chief minister for the privatisation of the Poultry Research Institute and poultry farms, adding that the proposals conceive conversion of the institute into a research board.

He said that the research institute was founded 30 years ago with a goal to promote research and development in the poultry industry across the country. There are 34 district headquarters of the institute, providing water testing, feed testing, vaccine postmortem and other test facilities free-of-charge to the farmers, he said.