One of the greatest moment in the history of Pakistan was recorded when the slogan “Allah ho Akbar” was raised near Ras Koh Hills in Chaghi on 28th May 1998. This memorable day which made Pakistan the first Muslim and the seventh atomic power in the world is celebrated as Youm-e-Takbeer throughout the country with great zeal and fervor. Recognizing the importance of the great venture, Pakistan Nuclear Society (PNS) organized a special hybrid seminar on “Pakistan’s Achievements in Nuclear Fields” on 24th May 2024 in Islamabad. Keeping in view of the mandate of PNS, that is to promote peaceful uses of nuclear technology as well as the awareness about its benefits to mankind for socioeconomic uplift of the country, eminent nuclear scientists and engineers were invited to showcase major achievements in the fields other than defense applications.
The invited speakers covered the major achievements of the country in uses of nuclear technology in agriculture, industry, materials, human health, and electricity generation. More than 70 persons, including retired senior officials from various organizations and universities physically attended the hybrid seminar and more than 100 persons participated online via Zoom link.
After recitation from the Holy Quran by Prof. Zia ur Rehman from Quaid-e-Azam University, Islamabad, the welcome address was given by Mr. Waqar A. Butt, Vice President PNS. He elaborated that although the credit of conducting successful nuclear tests mostly goes to the scientists, engineers, technicians and support staff of PAEC who worked day and night to make that miracle happen, yet some other establishments played pivotal role in bringing that dream true.
It includes R&D institutions, defence organizations and military personals for developing the required infrastructure and necessary technical and logistic support including safety and security at Chaghi. After that the Introductory Remarks were given by Dr. Muhammad Tahir Khaleeq, President PNS. He highlighted the importance of holding such seminars not only to recall our achievements and successes but also to motivate younger generation to work hard for greater national cause. He also thanked to all the speakers for accepting our invitation to deliver their talks on such a short notice.
Dr. Ansar Parvez, H.I, former Chairman PAEC delved into the prospects of nuclear energy, specifically focusing on the development of nuclear power in the country. He compared the cost of building nuclear power plants in Pakistan that is much lower as compared with similar plants in developed countries. He praised the efforts all those who kept the first nuclear power plant (KANUPP) running when the vendor support was withdrawn as a result of embargoes which were imposed after the nuclear device test of India in 1974.
Mr. Muhammad Naeem, N.I, H.I, S.I, former Chairman PAEC, shed light on Pakistan’s achievements in the nuclear fuel cycle, highlighting the country’s advancements in this critical area. He applauded the hard work and dedication of personals who made indigenous efforts from mining of uranium to the final product through all the difficult steps for both civil as well as defence requirements.
Dr. Yusuf Zafar, T.I, former Chairman Pakistan Agriculture Research Council (PARC), emphasized the pivotal role of nuclear technology in agriculture, highlighting Pakistan’s notable progress in this sector. He specifically mentioned the nuclear agriculture centres operating under PAEC had made tremendous progress in developing new varieties of various crops to deal with food security issues. He mentioned that Laser Land Levelers developed by PAEC had benefitted a lot to the formers for enhancing their crop productivity. However, he showed concern that the contribution of nuclear agriculture technology in overall national agriculture programme is very small that must be enhanced.
Engr. Ziauddin, former Member Engineering (PAEC), provided insights into the application of nuclear technology in industries, underscoring its significance in driving innovation and progress. He emphasized on the need of enhancing national innovation index at global level and cited the need of using of nuclear technology for advance reactor design like Small Modular Reactors (SMR), Molten Salt Reactors, fusion reactors, waste management and in materials testing. He mentioned that scope of Pakistan Radiation Services (PARAS) in Lahore has increased tremendously after the installation of Electron Beam facility for irradiations of surgical good and food items. However, he emphasized upon indigenization of industrial products for self-sufficiency and sustainability of our projects.
Dr. Mustansar Jahangir, former DG PINSTECH, explored the role of nuclear technology in human health, using the facilities of research reactors, mentioning the significant contributions in this field. He gave a good account of the radio- pharmaceuticals which are prepared at PINSTECH and are supplied to more than 70 hospitals in the country for cancer diagnostics and treatments saving a huge amount of foreign exchange.
Dr. Walayat Hussain, former Member Science, KRL amused the audience with a poetry specially written just after the nuclear tests in 1998. Dr. N. M. Butt, Chairperson Preston Institute of Nano Science &Technology, Dr. Shaukat Hameed Khan, former Rector GIKI and Prof. Dr. Rao Afzal, former Vice Chancellor, The Islamia University of Bahawalpur also expressed their views and gave thought provoking suggestion on that occasion.
Engr. Pervaz Butt, N.I, H.I, S.I, former Chairman PAEC, made the concluding remarks. He summarized the key takeaways from the seminar and highlighted the importance of continued advancements in nuclear technology. He specifically mentioned the contributions of PAEC’s engineering setups for the world renowned European Centre for Nuclear Research (CERN) in Switzerland. He recalled the technical expertise of those workshops who made delicate spare parts for KANUPP when the supplier backed out due to international pressure.
In the end, Dr. Mohammed Mohsin, General Secretary PNS, extended a heartfelt vote of thanks to all participants, speakers, and organizers, acknowledging their valuable contributions to the success of the seminar. The ceremony ended with a cake cutting ceremony to commemorate and celebrate the great day.
About Pakistan Nuclear Society (PNS)
PNS is a non-commercial and non-government registered professional body of highly qualified professionals; mainly scientists, engineers, medical doctors, educators, and technologists associated with nuclear and allied disciplines. PNS was established in 1991. Main objective of PNS formation was to promote peaceful uses of nuclear technology in various sectors including health, agriculture, environment, power generation, water resources managements, industries and much more. PNS registered members are more than 2700 including more than 1300 lifetime members.
PNS has more than 1200 associate member of 70 professional colleges and universities of Pakistan. PNS has organized a large number of conferences, seminars, workshops and elite lectures in the areas of nuclear power, applications of radiation technology in agriculture, water resource management, food preservation, healthcare, hi-tech industry, safety and security. PNS has a Scientific Advisory Board comprising of renowned scientists and engineers for guidance on S&T matters.
It also has an Administrative Advisory Board of experts from various walks of life to discuss issues of national interest in relevant disciplines and to seek new avenues for sustainable socio- economic development of the country. PNS has fellows, an expert’s pool and visiting faculty. PNS has also established Women in Nuclear (WiN-P), Youth in Nuclear (YiN) and Student chapters. The society regularly publishes a quarterly newsletter and has an informative dynamic website.
