Islamabad: Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif has directed that transparency and merit should be the top priority in the selection of students being sent for agricultural training in China.
According to Radio Pakistan, during a meeting in Islamabad, the Prime Minister instructed the formation of a committee to address complaints from students who do not meet the selection criteria during the scrutiny of applications through the portal. He emphasized that the government will cover all expenses for the modern agricultural training of Pakistani students in China, with the first batch of students departing soon. A ten percent special quota has been allocated for students from Balochistan for this training opportunity.
Shehbaz Sharif highlighted that China is Pakistan’s longstanding friend, with unparalleled development in the agricultural sector. He expressed gratitude to the Chinese leadership and universities for offering Pakistani students the chance to receive modern agricultural training.
The Prime Minister was briefed that students from the agricultural sector submitted their applications through the portal transparently. Out of 1,287 applications, 711 students met the established criteria for training, including candidates from Balochistan and Gilgit-Baltistan.
It was further informed that these students will be sent to China in two batches. The first batch of 300 students will receive training in irrigation improvement, livestock disease diagnosis and monitoring, livestock breeding and modern genetics, and the preparation and processing of modern seeds. This group will depart for China in March.
The second batch, comprising 400 students, will be sent to China in the middle of this year. They will undergo training in the use of modern machinery in agriculture, rapid crop growth, the application of modern technology in agriculture including artificial intelligence, and fruit and vegetable processing.