Rs900m Investment Highlights ICCBS’s Research Standing

KARACHI: A federal investment of about Rs. 900 million by the Ministry of National Food Security and Research (MNFS&R) for establishing the National Reference Laboratory of the Department of Plant Protection (NRL-DPP) at the International Center for Chemical and Biological Sciences (ICCBS), University of Karachi, reflects the institution’s standing as one of the region’s leading research centers.

This was stated by Prof. Dr. Atta-ur-Rahman, Professor Emeritus and former Federal Minister for Science and Technology, while addressing an Awareness Seminar on the Newly Established NRL-DPP at the H.E.J. Research Institute of Chemistry for Quality Testing of Export and Import Commodities on Tuesday. The seminar was jointly organized by the NRL-DPP and the H.E.J. Research Institute of Chemistry, ICCBS.

Other speakers included Yasin Murtaza, Advisor and Director General, Department of Plant Protection, MNFS&R; Prof. Dr. Muhammad Raza Shah, Director ICCBS; Prof. Dr. Syed Ghulam Musharraf, In-charge NRL-DPP; Prof. Dr. Shahid Mansoor; and Muhammad Hassan Chachar, Deputy Director (P&D), DPP.

Welcoming members of the business community, Prof. Atta-ur-Rahman said ICCBS has emerged as Pakistan’s leading research institution under his patronage. He highlighted the establishment of the Jamil-ur-Rahman Centre for Genomics Research, equipped with advanced gene-editing facilities, and said the center is providing forensic services to the Sindh government, helping raise the province’s criminal conviction rate from about four percent to over 15 percent.

Prof. Dr. Muhammad Raza Shah said the newly established NRL-DPP is a state-of-the-art facility accredited by the Pakistan National Accreditation Council (PNAC) and funded by the federal government. He added that it now serves as Pakistan’s regulatory reference laboratory for agro-product testing. He noted that ICCBS has received 34 civil awards, including Nishan-e-Imtiaz, Hilal-e-Imtiaz, Sitara-e-Imtiaz, Tamgha-e-Imtiaz, and Pride of Performance awards, and has been designated a Centre of Excellence by international organizations such as WHO and UNESCO.

In an online address, Yasin Murtaza said ICCBS was selected for the project due to the outstanding team of scientists working under Prof. Atta-ur-Rahman, describing the collaboration as a unique initiative reflecting the institution’s international standing.