Development budget of science and technology ministry increased by 600pc: Fawad.

KARACHI -- Pakistan is heading towards the manufacturing of lithium batteries for solar power with the support of Chinese companies and this would boost the country's efforts to meet its growing energy needs.

This was stated by Science and Technology Minister Fawad Hussain Chaudhry during the inaugural ceremony of a four-day symposium that opened at Karachi University (KU) on Monday.

A large number of local and international scientists are participating in the 7th International Symposium-cum-training course on Molecular Medicine and Drug Research organised at Dr Panjwani Centre for Molecular Medicine and Drug Research.

'There has been a 600 per cent increase in the development budget of the ministry of science and technology. The ministry also plans to create strong coordination among the country's best 15 research institutions,' he said.

The seventh international symposium on molecular medicine and drug research opens at Karachi University

The minister also welcomed the delegates and said that he was pleased to see a large number of foreign scientists participating in the symposium.

'This major science event is indeed an important step towards a better understanding of diseases at the molecular level and towards development of safe and effective drugs,' he said, while asking students to study the ideas of philosophers and social thinkers to know the science of society.

'No comparison with PTI sit-in'

Later, the minister spoke to journalists on various issues, one of them being the ongoing sit-in protest by the Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl in Islamabad.

The minister regretted that Pakistan's recent initiative to highlight the Kashmir issue in the international community got weakened due to the agitation.

'There is no comparison between the sit-ins the PTI had and the one currently continuing in Islamabad. The PTI first knocked on the doors of courts and commissions and then was forced to opt for a sit-in, which obviously is not the case [with] JUI-F,' he said.

To another question, he claimed that the problem of drinking water in Karachi would be solved in the next 16 months.

Highlighting government efforts, Prof Dr Atta-ur-Rahman, the chairman of Prime Minister's Task Force on Science and Technology, said the science conference was not only about quality and excellence in research but also about friendship and cooperation between nations.

Talking about the government's current initiatives in science and technology, he...