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The main purpose of this investigation is to examine influence of financial technology (FT) on Corporate Environmental Performance. In addition, the present study examines green finance (GF) and green innovation (GI) as mediating variables between FT and CEP. Lastly, this study examines the moderating effect of the Resource Commitment (RC) between FT and CEP. The population of the study, comprised of managers working in different manufacturing companies in Pakistan, scholars used adopted questioner to collect data from respondents. A structural equational model was used to test the hypothesis of the study. The results indicate that FA has positively associate with CEP. The findings support the notion that GF and GI are the mediator between FA and CEP. The results confirm that RC moderates the relationship between FA and CEP. This study provides recommendations for regulators in formulating regulations that align with achievement of the technological goals of the firms. This study stands out as first to investigate the observed relationships. Research emphasizes the urgent need for the incorporation of novel technology, environmentally-friendly initiatives, and financial mechanisms into organization strategies so as to facilitate corporate environmental performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Primary goal of this study was to examine how several factors, including disclosure practices, risk management, and corporate governance, affect the growth of Pakistan's financial services sector. The design of study was based on a positivist paradigm, and quantitative research methods were used. In this type of cross-sectional research, primary method of collecting data was a survey, and findings of that survey were examined after they were collected. In order to carry out this investigation, researchers used a method known as simple random sampling. A standard questionnaire was used in order to gather information from managers of the many branches of the banking sector. The results suggest that improvements in corporate governance are responsible for improvements in the performance of the banking industry. Data revealed that increased corporate disclosure leads to improved overall performance in banking industry. In conclusion, the findings verified that efficient methods of risk management are directly responsible for the increased performance of the banking industry. In the instance of Pakistan, empirical data pertaining to financial institutions is of very low quality. Study offers evidence that formal corporate governance and disclosure practises in banking are critical to the success of businesses in the service industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pesticides are indispensable for successful vegetable production; however, misuse of insecticides results in chemical pollution and entry into the food chain. This study uniquely addresses the quantification of pesticide residues in cauliflower curds and soil, and associated human health risks in the specific climatic conditions of Multan City, and it is the first to collectively examine these five (lufenuron, bifenthrin, emamectin benzoate, metalaxyl, and mancozeb) pesticides in cauliflower. A survey of the cauliflower production area was performed to collect information about pesticides used for insect pest and disease management. Farmers were applying lufenuron, bifenthrin, emamectin benzoate, metalaxyl, and mancozeb. The cauliflower plant and soil samples were collected with the frequency of 1,3,5,7,and 15 days after the application of pesticides.The collected plant and soil samples dried and extracted to determine pesticide residues using the modified QuECHERS method. Pesticides residues assessment was performed on High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) at the Pesticide Quality Control Laboratory, Multan. There were no pesticide residues were detected in the soil samples. While in the cauliflower 20% samples (out of 40 samples) contained pesticide residues. Initial deposits of lufenuron of 0.93, 3.19, and 5.63 ppm were detected in the cauliflower samples of day 1 (after pesticide application) from the fields of farmers 1, 4, and 8, respectively. Bifenthrin residues of 1.64 and 1.78 ppm were detected in the cauliflower samples of day 1 (after pesticide application) from the fields of farmers1 and 8, respectively. Similarly, bifenthrin residues of 0.81 and 0.61 ppm were detected in the cauliflower samples of day 3 (after pesticide application) from the fields of farmers 1 and 8. Bifenthrin residues were also detected in the 5th day sample (0.41 ppm) from the fields of farmer 8. While performing the risk assessment it was revealed that there will be no health risk associated for an average body weight (60 kg) person with the cauliflower consumption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the study of stock investment in capital market by investors in Pandemic Covid-19, it is always carried out rationally. Indeed, the decisions on stock investments are not always rational.The main purpose of this research is to analyze the behavioral factors that affect the preferences of individual's investors and fund managers in the emerging stock market, Pakistan Stock Exchange. The data of this research were collected through interviews semi structured with the five investor and five fund managers from the stock exchange from Pakistan. The researchers used thematic analysis for data interpretation. The major findings stress that retail investors are more effected by behavioral biases in comparison with fund managers. Further, the results shows that there are some major biases which are effecting both type of investors such as: Herding, Market, Prospect, Overconfidence-gambling errors and Anchoring-ability bias. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Technological intervention and financial innovation are an essential element for the banking sector especially in post-Covid 19 scenario. Islamic banking industry has also no exception and Islamic banks could attain institutional objectives over financial technology. The motivation behind research is to investigate emergence of financial technology in Islamic Banking Industry and its Influence on Bank Performance. The population of the study consists of Islamic banks and windows of Islamic banks operating in Pakistan. The sample size consists of four Islamic banks, five Islamic windows of conventional banks, and State bank of Pakistan. Purposive sampling technique was used by researcher. Semi-structured interviews were conducted and NVIVO software was used for data analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The employees' psychological capital, characterized by constructs of positive-psychology (hope, courage, optimism, resilience), has effects on the organizational behavior and performance. These abilities help employees to enhance their commitment and manage occupational stress. These positive and negative relationships of the psychological capital with the commitment and occupational stress were tested empirically using primary school teachers in the schools of District Bakhar. Based upon the 'positivist' philosophy, 'scientific methods' including survey approach and statistical analysis were used to test hypothesis generated from literature over the thematic-analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE: To compare the combined antimicrobial effect of Thuja orientalis and Ciprofloxacin against Pseudomonas aeruginosa in vitro samples. METHODS: In-vitro antibacterial activity of plant-extracts was evaluated alone and in combination with ciprofloxacin against Pseudomonas aeruginosa using disc-diffusion susceptibility assay (Kirby Bauer method) and minimum inhibitory concentration (96 well broth microdilution method) following CLSI guidelines. Pseudomonas aeruginosa clinical strains were collected from Rehman Medical Institute (RMI) and Northwest General Hospital Peshawar, Pakistan and ATCC strains (no.9721) of this bacterium were collected from Agriculture University Peshawar. The organism was tested six times with crude extract and fractionation with different solvents such as n-hexane, chloroform, ethyl acetate and butanol at concentrations of 1, 4, 8, 12, 16, 20, 24, 30 and 36 mg/ml. The mean MIC and FICI (fractional inhibitory concentration index) was obtained to report the synergism. The data were analysed using SPSS version-21. RESULTS: In combination, methanolic crude extract, chloroform and butanol fraction showed synergistic effect at all tested concentrations against Pseudomonas aeruginosa (ATCC 9721 and clinical) except with 1, 4, 16 mg/ml concentrations. Ethyl acetate and aqueous fractions shows indifference and synergistic effect against Pseudomonas aeruginosa (ATCC 9721 and clinical) at different concentrations. The fractional inhibitory concentration index (FICI) ranged from 1.24 to 3.24 against Pseudomonas aeruginosa alone and in combination with ciprofloxacin. CONCLUSION: By disc diffusion method, this study shows synergistic effect against Pseudomonas aeruginosa in combination with ciprofloxacin. However, through minimum inhibitory concentration method, it shows antagonism and indifference but no synergistic effect against different fractions of plant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Collaborative orthodontic-endodontic approaches are vital in addressing complex dental cases. However, existing literature reveals a notable dearth in understanding and implementing this approach among dental practitioners. Objective: This study aimed to bridge the gap in understanding current practices among dental practitioners, fostering enhanced patient care and ethical standards. This cross-sectional survey, conducted from September 1st to 30th, 2023, involved distributing a validated questionnaire to dental practitioners in the Hazara Division, yielding 96 responses from 105 visited clinics and 44 from hospitals. Descriptive statistics were used for frequencies and percentages using SPSS version 23. Methodology: The survey involved 78.6% general dentists, 13.6% orthodontists, and 7.9% endodontists. Varying levels of correct responses were observed for the knowledge-based questions. Results: Positive attitudes were seen, with 70% of respondents expressing an interest in enhancing knowledge through educational programs, and 73% agreeing to adhere to interdisciplinary guidelines. Furthermore, 79.3% of practitioners had experience treating cases requiring both orthodontic tooth movement and endodontic therapy. Conclusion: Notably, orthodontists and endodontists showed higher percentages of accurate responses compared to general dentists. In conclusion, this study underscores the need for improved education, standardized protocols, and better patient communication for effective interdisciplinary dental care specifically in general dental practitioners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reduction in cost of production to make agriculture profitable is a major challenge and all out efforts have been made by successive government in Pakistan to pass benefits to the farmers by reducing input prices through reduction in GST, providing cash subsidy and supplying inexpensive feed gas for fertilizer industry. Currently, cash subsidy on urea is costing Rs. 12 billion to national exchequer and total tax relief (all products inclusive) costing around Rs. 40 billion to the national exchequer, respectively. Thus, total financial implication of subsidy and tax relief is Rs. 52 billion. In the existing tax regime tax rates vary greatly from 3.55% (SSP) to 11.73% (NPK). Due to these distortions farmers prefer to use higher dosages of Urea and low grade P-based fertilizers. This anomaly is negatively affecting productivity of major crops in general and high value crops in particular. Presently average weighted tax rate on all fertilizers is 5.83 percent. The imposition of uniform tax rate of 5% on all fertilizers, without cash subsidy on urea will reduce financial implication to Rs. 43 billion and at 2% tax rate financial implication will be Rs. 53.7 billion per annum. Imposition of uniform tax rates will result into decrease in market prices of fertilizers, consequently their use will be higher and balance among nutrients application will improve. The Imposition of uniform tax rate of 2% will reduce fertilizer cost for production of major crops by; 18% for wheat, 13% for rice, 20% each for cotton and sugarcane. Modest increase in crop productivity by just 5% could result in additional production of major crops (wheat, rice, cotton, sugarcane and maize) of worth Rs. 111.57 billion. While, existing production levels of major crops can be obtained by reducing area under these crops by 859 thousand hectares, and spared area can be brought into cultivation under high value crops to diversify the cropping systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Citation analysis of the Dialogue was conducted to get knowledge about the citation pattern; the most cited documents; references per article; references per year and proposed quantification for the documents published from 2014 to 2016. The quantitative approach was adopted for this study. The website of Dialogue was used for obtaining metadata about the research papers published during 2014- 2016. Google Scholar citation instead of Journal Citation Report was used for the calculation of proposed Impact Factor (IF). The major findings of the study reflect that the proposed calculated Cite Score of the Dialogue for the mentioned period is 0.14 whereas the proposed self-calculated Impact Factor is 0.22. The citation rate of documents published in 2014 was recorded more as compared to the rest of the years. The citation rate should be improved by the inclusion of Dialogue in indexing databases of international repute. This practice will enhance quality of the Journal and will be able to create room in world of Thomson Router and other renowned research databases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dialogue is a leading multidisciplinary journal being published by the Qurtuba University Peshawar, on quarterly basis. This journal publishes original articles, book reviews and views. The title, abstract, author’s affiliation and collaborations, gender, subject matter, the date of publication, prolific contributors and references are used as information sources for bibliometric data collection. The primary investigation explore that there are 269 research articles and 16 book reviews and views. For the sake of convenience, only original research articles from 2006 to 2015 are designated for this study. The analysis shows that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is on the top regarding rate of publications in the specified period of time as compared to the rest of the provinces of Pakistan as well as abroad. The analysis of citation pattern shows that book is the more cited document in Dialogue. Dialogue has gradually upgraded its position through its global leadership as it has listed in leading indices of the world as an open access journal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Horticulture has a well realized role in providing essential major and micro nutrients in the diets of people in Pakistan. The study examines the trends and variation of area, production and yield of fruit crops in Punjab province from 1971 to 2014. The growth trend of fruits' production in the province showed positive behavior for major fruits (citrus, mango and guava) in almost all the decades, except for mango in 1970s and guava in 2000s. The decline in production of mango in 1970s was due to negative growth in both area and yield. While, a slowdown growth in the area and decrease in yield were reasons of decline in production of guava in 2000s. Growth in production of minor fruits showed a cyclical trend i.e., increased and decreased in alternate decades. Results of Cuddy-Della Valle Index showed that variations in production of major fruits decreased over time (from 1970s to 1990s); however, variability in their production escalated and reached to the highest levels for citrus and mango again in 2000s. While, variations in guava production were the highest in 1970s followed by 1980s. On the basis of growth rate data these can be attributed to expansion in area to a great extent and partially to productivity improvement. Variations in production of minor fruits increased overtime (from 1970s to 1990s) and then declined in 2000s. During the study period, fruit production varied due to area, though productivity altered considerably. The results of decomposition analysis indicated a relatively stronger stimulus of area expansion in production of citrus. While yield affect remained dominant in production of mango, guava and minor fruits across decades as well as during the study period. Chances of expansion in area of fruit crops are limited due to constraint of availability of agricultural land. Thus, to keep healthy growth in fruits' production, improvements in yield levels of fruits crop are required. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bio-fertilizers, besides their role in soil health improvement are also considered environment friendly and a cheap substitute for fertilizer. Biozote application in rice crop was demonstrated at farmers' fields in Hafizabad and Sheikhupura districts under the project "Improving Soil Fertility and Soil Health in Pakistan". The present paper aimed to assess the performance of biozote on rice and is based on perceptions of farmers involved in on-farm demonstration trials. Four different treatments on each selected plot were carried out for demonstration purpose by a team of technical partners from NARC during kharif 2014. The results are based on farmers' perception recorded through a structured questionnaire and face to face interviews at their fields. Majority of the host farmers found that plots with biozote had better germination and also found it a good technology for improving rice yield. Non-availability of biozote at local level, less farmers' awareness and low education level of farmers were identified as major issues in adoption of this technology in the study areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The first monitoring of the resistance to two organophosphates (methidathion and ethion) and one pyrethroid (cypermethrin) insecticides presented by three field collections of different Rhynchophorus ferrugineus (Olivier) populations was performed in this study. The LD50 doses of three insecticides against newly moulted eighth-instar R. ferrugineus larvae were estimated through toxicity bioassays, in which the larvae were fed on artificial diet supplemented with different individual doses of cypermethrin, methidathion or ethion. A population of R. ferrugineus collected from Wadi Ad-Dawasir was chosen as the reference strain, because of its susceptibility to each of the tested insecticide. Compared with the susceptible strain, populations sampled from Al-Ahsa and Al-Qatif showed 8.72 and 4.51-folds increase in resistance to cypermethrin and 3.77 and 2.85-fold increases in resistance to ethion, respectively. The LD50 values of cypermethrin (1.62 ppm), methidathion (3.15 ppm) and ethion (9.12 ppm) in the susceptible population (Wadi Ad-Dawasir) were used to investigate the feeding performances and physiological impacts on eighth-instar R. ferrugineus larvae. The larvae showed no resistance to the most potent insecticide (methidathion) resulting highest growth reduction. However, moderate resistance was observed from red palm weevil population collected from Al-Qatif and Al-Ahsa against cypermethrin resulting lowest reduction in the efficacy of conversion of ingested food (ECI) and digested food (ECD). In addition, glutathione-S-transferase (GST) activity assay further strengthen our findings. Results suggest that enhanced GST activity likely contributes to cypermethrin and ethion resistance exhibited by the R. ferrugineus populations sampled from Al-Qatif and Al-Ahsa. Toxicity bioassays, dietary utilization experiments and GST assays examined in this study support the use of methidathion against R. ferrugineus as the most potent insecticide against all the sampled populations. However, cypermethrin and ethion resistance appears to be evolving in the R. ferrugineus populations from Al-Qatif and Al-Ahsa, justifying the concern of farmers regarding the low efficacy of insecticides. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Livestock markets are trading places for live animals where suppliers and buyers can make transactions. This study was designed to investigate the existing marketing system of live camels in the desert ecologies of Pakistan. Out of 220 camel farmers that were randomly interviewed for the study, during past one year sale of live camels was reported by more than half of the camel farmers. On an average two camels per farm mainly to meet urgent family cash needs. Mean ages of adult males, milking and non-milking females, male and female young stocks at the time of sale were 8.3, 10.8, 12.3, 1.8 and 2.3 years, respectively, with average sale prices of Rs.102523, Rs.84643, Rs.57800, Rs.43215 and Rs.45833, respectively. The camel markets are generally located far away from the villages. High marketing costs and lack of proper market infrastructure/facilities compel farmers to sell camels at village level to the village dealers and fellow farmers at relatively low prices. Percent difference in prices at wholesale market and village levels were 28.6, 12.9, 6.0 and 0.5 for adult male, wet female, dry female and young stock, respectively. The prevailing marketing situation of live camels is an indicative of exploitation farmers from the village dealers/market intermediaries. The regulatory laws of livestock markets applied in Pakistan are not comprehensive and do not cover all the aspects necessary for the markets to function efficiently. It is, therefore, recommended that the proper marketing system and physical infrastructure for live camels should be developed to benefit the poor camel farmers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study was designed to compare costs of rearing and returns received from major dairy buffalo breeds (Nili-Ravi and Kundhi) in various agro-ecological zones of Pakistan. For this purpose, 219 buffalo farmers were randomly selected from mixed and rice-wheat cropping zones of Punjab and Sindh provinces, mixed cropping zone of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) province, coastal zone of Sindh and mountainous- AJK. Of these, 155 and 64 were Nili-Ravi and Kundhi buffalo breed farmers, respectively. The study revealed that among the structure of cost components, feed cost occupied the major share in total cost of milk production. Milk production of buffaloes of Nili-Ravi and Kundhi breeds were 2889 and 2375 liter per annum, respectively. Total costs of milk production of Nili-Ravi and Kundhi buffalo breeds were Rs.96155 and Rs.90604 per annum, respectively. Net income per liter from milk of Nili- Ravi and Kundhi breeds was Rs.12 and Rs.11, and benefit-cost ratios were 1.4 and 1.3, respectively. Hence, Nili-Ravi buffalo breed is more productive and yields better returns over Kundhi breed. Moreover, buffalo milk production is a profitable business in the country except in coastal areas of Sindh, where investment in milk production just covers the cost of production due to comparatively higher feed prices and low milk prices. Econometric analysis of milk production in the country revealed that use of green fodder and concentrates contribute positively and significantly to milk production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Yield gap is useful measurement for crop productivity and the extent to which crop productivity falls below some potential level. The study was carried out to analyze the yield gap and determinants of wheat production in the Punjab province of Pakistan. It is based on cross sectional data from 210 farmers for the crop year 2009-10. Results suggest that farm level wheat yields are less than the potential yield level by 33.0%, 43.0% and 50.6% in the mixed-cropping, cotton-wheat and rice-wheat zones of the province, respectively. Ordinary least square regression analysis of wheat production by assuming Cobb-Douglas specification reveals that the number of irrigations, usage of farm yard manure and fertilizers contribute positively and significantly to wheat crop production. Coefficients of dummy variables for cropping zones indicate that farmers in the mixed cropping zone are obtaining better yield of the wheat crop as compared to their counterparts in other selected cropping zones. These results suggested that farmers can increase wheat productivity by increasing the use of factor inputs; however, poverty may be a constraint on realizing these gains. Thus, wheat production can be increased in the country by helping resource poor farmers through suitable support mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study aimed to find out the economics of major breeds of cow in selected areas of Sindh and Azad Jammu and Kashmir. It is based on primary data of 130 livestock farmers, selected through simple random sampling technique. Shares of different feed resources in total feeding cost have been determined and cost-benefit analysis of milk production by ecological zones was also conducted. Wide variations in share of feed sources in total feeding cost per annum, milk productivity and profitability of main cow breeds across selected areas have been observed. Concentrate feeding is the main cost item for cow milk production in irrigated areas of Sindh and constitutes more than half (54 %) of the total feeding cost per annum. While, in coastal and desert areas of Sindh, and mountainous - AJK wheat straw is the major cost item and shares more than half of the total feeding costs per annum (51 - 58 %). Mean milk productions per lactation of Red-Sindhi breed were 1845 lit and 1590 lit in the irrigated and coastal areas of Sindh, respectively. Productivity of Thari breed in desert areas of Sindh and that of non-descript cow breed in AJK was 1411 lit and 2008 lit per lactation, respectively. Cow milk production is profitable farming activity in irrigated areas of Sindh and mountainous-AJK with benefit-cost ratios of 1.5 and 1.4, respectively. While, benefit-cost ratios of cow milk production were 1.0 and 0.7 in desert and coastal areas of Sindh, respectively, indicating subsistence nature of cow farming in these ecologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Pakistan, telecommunication tools like television, radio and mobile phone are playing important role in agriculture productivity enhancement, growth and farmers' prosperity. Mobile phone helps farmers in getting information about commodity prices in different markets. The farmers can get up-to-date information about various markets in different regions and can accordingly arrange transportation and labor services in time. The study was conducted to see the effect of timely information availability with mobile on productivity. The data was collected through well structured questionnaire by interviewing 60 farmers from district Charsadda. The data was analyzed through simple averages, correlation analysis and paired t-test. Average yield of bitter gourd crop was 23569 kg acre-1 with cell phone use of 8h per season. It is perceived that low communication cost and availability of information about wholesale market prices through SMS service and low cost calling packages will help farmers and market agents in improving bitter gourd production and its marketing, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Laboratory bioassays were designed on the strains of Metarhizium anisopliae and Beauveria bassiana to check the feasibility of using "trap and treat" method for controlling Coptotermes formosanus Shiraki (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae). Different percentages of exposed C. formosanus workers 100%, 50%, 25% and 1% were then allowed to mingle with unexposed termites 0%, 50%, 75% and 99%, respectively. The mortality of combined group suggested that as the number of exposed individuals decreased, capacity of the workers to resist disease through mutual grooming was increased. Lower percentage of exposed individuals (1%), could not transfer inoculum resulting very low mortality (<3%) in any studied fungus. The strains of M. anisopliae were better than B. bassiana in producing epizootics in the experimental units because these strains produced more directly penetrating appressoria (62-67%), compared to B. bassiana (43-52%). These directly penetrating appressoria might be related to the virulence of the strains. We conclude that grooming ability to protect the termites from fungi is only workable when lower percentages of individuals are exposed. The workers may play pivotal role in the failure of disease epizootics by "trap and treat" method in the field through allogrooming because a colony of C. formosanus comprised of millions of individuals and little inoculum can not be spread among the nest-mates, resulting failure of disease transmission in the field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study was designed to analyze the production and marketing of camel products in the semi-desert and desert areas of Pakistan. It is based on cross-sectional data collected through simple random sampling technique in April, 2011 from 220 camel farmers and 17 market intermediaries. It is found that both camel farmers and market intermediaries were less educated. It is observed that markets for camel milk, meat, hides and hair are less established in semi desert and desert areas of the country. Mean production of milk per farm household was 5.4 and 6.5 liters per day in summer and winter seasons, respectively; however, none of the surveyed farmers reported milk sale. During last one year, sales of camel hides and hair were reported by few farmers (6% each). Mean purchase price of camel hides reported by shopkeepers in nearby town markets were higher than village level prices by 74.6 % and even more in case of hair. This is an indicative of camel farmers' exploitation by the village dealers. Mean quantity of hair sales was about 20 kg per farm per annum. Camel hair are also used by the farmers for making ropes, rugs and blankets, but all these byproducts are not marketed. Shares of farmers in the consumer rupee for camel meat, milk, hides and hair were about 61%, 75%, 52% and 26%, respectively. Keeping in view poor status of camel products' markets, development of proper marketing system and structure for camel products by involving camel farmers and other local stakeholders is recommended to benefit the local communities by ameliorating supply of camel products in local markets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study was designed to estimate the marketing margins and rural-urban price differences of fresh fruits and vegetables. A checklist and an open-ended questionnaire were developed and used to interview a total of 200 retailers (rural and urban), 100 producers, 30 commission agents and 10 transporters in July 2010. Price data were collected from rural and urban retailers in Hyderabad, Faisalabad, Peshawar, Muzaffarabad and Quetta. It was observed that the retail prices of fresh fruits and vegetables were higher in rural markets as compared to urban markets and differences were even higher in vegetables as compared to fruits. For fruits the difference ranged from 8.6-25.0% in Hyderabad, 5.2-39.0% in Faisalabad, 2.3-22.0% in Muzaffarabad, 20.0-50.0% in Peshawar and 11.0% in Quetta. Difference in rural-urban retail prices for vegetables varied between 12.0-36.0% in Hyderabad 6.3-89.0% in Faisalabad, 4.0-25.0% in Muzaffarabad and 6.7-66.7% in Quetta. The producer's share of the price was more or less 25.0% for most fruits and vegetables. It was observed that the total marketing margin for potatoes was 84.2%, onion 130.8%, persimmon 334.8%, pear 128.6%, banana 371.7%, sweet lemon 389.8%, and guava 176.2%. The net margin to intermediaries for potatoes, onion, persimmon, pear, banana, sweet lemon, and guava was accounted at 43%, 111.4%, 316.5%, 104.5%, 353.9%, 370.8% and 152.4%, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to identify the effects of climate change on the socioeconomic characteristic and livelihoods of farmers in semi arid zones of Punjab and Khyber Pukhtunkhwa provinces of Pakistan. Data for the study has been taken from various issues of Crop Area Production (by districts) MINFA (Economic Wing), district agricultural departments and meteorological department, Islamabad. Primary data for the study was collected in 2010 by conducting farm level surveys in Kohat and Attock districts. Clusters of six villages were selected from each district for field surveys. Six community representatives and 36 farmers were interviewed by using a set of well-designed questionnaires from each site. Results showed that over last three decades, number of small and tenant farmers increased in the semi-arid zones of Pakistan due to environmental harshness in general and law of inheritance in particular. Due to increase in mean annual temperatures and irregular rain patterns, area under major crops at Kohat and productivity of major crop at Attock decreased. Bivariate correlations between mean seasonal rainfall, area and production of major crops were moderately positive and statistically significant (except for wheat crop at Attock). This means that an increase in rainfall contribute positively towards area under major crops and their production and vice-versa. Farmers perceived a major change in climate at Kohat and a minor change at Attock over time. They reported unsustainability in production practices at Kohat and water management practices at both sites. Main strategies adopted by the farmers to mitigate the effects of climate change were occasional sale of livestock, reduction in consumption expenditures, and migration to nearby cities for non-farm employment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Goats have helped people to survive and thrive for countless generations. Proper feeding and management is of fundamental importance to the success of any goats' enterprise. In Pothowar region of Punjab, household and sedentary system of goat production is practiced. The availability of feed varies according to the season. Goats in the region are under nourished and producing less than potential. This study was conducted to find out the feed supplementation practices of goats in the Pothowar region. Data for this study was collected for the complete calendar year 2008. Data sheets were prepared in Urdu and provided to 100 literate female household members belonging to ten villages of tehsil Talagang of Chakwal district for data collection. According to the findings of the study, average number of goats per household was four; two does and two non-milking goats. Goats were mainly supplemented with ber (Zizyphus) leaves, wheat and mustard fodders in winter season and ber leaves, sorghum and bajra fodders in summer. Groundnut and wheat straws were main dry fodder. Wheat grains, oil seed cakes, wheat bran (choker), grams and left over dry breads were the concentrates fed to goats. On the whole about 30% metabolizable energy requirements of non-milking goats and 34% of does were fulfilled by supplementation. Goats were supplemented maximum during January-March, June, November and December and grazed for greater periods in summer and autumn than in winter and spring seasons. It can therefore be concluded that in general the months when minimum supplements were given are the better ones in terms of feed availability because majority of feed intake comes from grazing. Moreover, supplementation of goats can be improved by educating local communities about the proper supplementation and by planting palatable shrubs and fodder trees. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this double blind controlled study, the effects of intramuscular Dexamethasone on neuropraxia development of inferior alveolar nerve and lingual nerve following the surgical removal of mandibular third molars were studied after 24 hours. Patients who were contraindicated to the use of steroid i.e. hypertensive, GIT ulcer, diabetics, bacterial infections, history of thromboembolic events, psychosis, patients taking other medication chronically and pregnant were excluded from this study. Out of total 200 hundred impactions cases, 100 cases received 8mg intramuscular dexamethasone one hour prior to surgical extraction but it was not given to other 100 cases of control group. The overall rate of paresthesia of lingual nerve was 15% and of the inferior alveolar nerve 6.5%. On comparison no statistical difference in neuropraxia with in the dexamethasone group and control group was noted. P value for lingual nerve was 1.000 and for inferior alveolar nerve 0.390 so both had no significance statistically (p>0.05). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Fisheries play a key role for national income and a source of food in Pakistan. Therefore, forecasting the production of fish is important for better production and for planning of fish export. Objective of this research is to propose suitable Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA) model for forecasting the production of fisheries, using Box-Jenkins's (1976) methodology. Secondary data, "50 years of Pakistan: volume-iii (1947-1997)" published by Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) and World Development Indicators World Bank (2016) from the year 1947-2016 was used. After comparing all possible ARIMA model diagnostically, ARIMA (2, 1, 3) is the most parsimonious model with less forecast error. Forecast values for the fisheries production from 633.974 to 720.196 tons for the year 2017-2026 shows a significant increase in the fisheries production. The proposed ARIMA (2,1,3) model for forecasting is helpful for fish producers, researchers, business men, and planning their resources as well as decision making regarding the export and production of fisheries in Pakistan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The potential of the leaf extracts of Dodonaea viscosa Jacq. as termiticide on tunneling and midgut enzyme activities of Odontotermes obesus (Ramb.) (Termitidae: Isoptera) was evaluated in the present studies. In the preliminary bioassays, leaf extracts in polar and non-polar solvents were mixed in the soil at 1, 5 and 10% concentrations and their effect on mortality (LT) and tunnel length (mm) was determined. The toxic fraction following gel filtration was analysed for kaempferol by HPLC. The effect of standard kaempferol, gel fraction, crude leaf extract and chlorpyrifos was ascertained on tunnel length and enzyme systems in the gut of the termite species. n-Hexane crude leaf extract of D. viscosa was the most toxic registering minimum LT50 (104.41, 95.53 and 66.68 hours) and tunnel length (63.00, 36.33 and 16.67 mm), respectively at 1, 5 and 10% concentrations. Gel filtrated fraction No. 3 had significantly lowest LT50 (58.70, 33.96 and 15.94 h) corresponding to 1, 5 and 10% concentrations. The presence of kaempferol in gel filtrated fraction matched with peak of its standard in HPLC system. Interaction of effect of kaempferol, gel filtrated fraction, n-Hexane crude leaf extract and chlorpyrifos at their respective concentrations was non-significant but significantly different from their parallel control treatments. A significant decrease (p<0.05) in the activities of esterases, proteases and cellulases in the gut of termite workers after exposure to kaempferol, gel filtrated fraction, n-Hexane crude leaf extract treatments at different concentrations was observed. The activity of esterases in the gut was reduced in chlorpyrifos exposed termite worker, whereas proteases and cellulases in these workers remained nonsignificant with their control treatments. From these studies, it is concluded that kaempferol in n-Hexane extract of D. viscosa can be effective in the development of baiting system against the termites. © 2015 Friends Science Publishers [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]