Natural resources (land, water, biological and climatic) of
Pakistan and their impact on crop production. Climatic factors
and their relationship with crop growth processes like
photosynthesis, respiration and transpiration. Agro-ecological
zones of Pakistan and their features. Dry farming. Organic
farming for agricultural environmental pollution management.
Use of bio-fertilizers, biopesticides and natural products.
Biological N2fixation and factors affecting biological N2 fixation.
Source-sink relationships in crop plants. Weed-crop
interference; competition and allelopathic interactions.
Role of Agri. Extension in current and future agriculture in
Pakistan. Methods and steps to evaluate extension activities.
Global overview of Agri. extension. Types, principles, strategies
and significance of audio-visual aids in Agri. Extension.
Importance, potential and principles of Agro forestry. Various
agro-forestry systems. Forest products and utilization features
of range management in Pakistan. Major wildlife species found
in Pakistan, their morphological features, behaviour and
habitats.
National forest policy and other land use policies. Biodiversity,
its conservation, threats and losses, Impact of environmental
changes on biodiversity.
Role of Indus Basin Irrigation System in the development of
agriculture in Pakistan. Current and future scope of farm
mechanization in Pakistan.
Food processing and preservation. Food industries of Pakistan
and their role in the national economy. WTO implications to
food business. Food analysis, contamination of foods business.
Food analysis, contamination of foods and its control measures.
Processing and uses of dairy products. Basic nutrition
requirements of human body and their relationship with
nutrition related diseases.
Indicators and issues of agriculture sector in Pakistan and their
role in national economy. Land tenure systems and land
reforms in Pakistan. Principles, objectives and functions of WTO.
Role of IT in agriculture.
Concept of genetics. Role of genetics in crop improvement.
Chemical composition of hereditary material. Molecular basis of
genetic code. Basic control system in gene expression.
Variation-basis of plant breeding, its creation and exploitation.
Breeding strategies. Breeding methods of self, cross and
asexually propagated crops. Process of variety development.
Concept of modern breeding; doubled haploid breeding,
marker-assisted breeding, mutation breeding, heteroploid
breeding, hybrid breeding and transgenic breeding. Various
techniques of developing transgenic plants and scope of
transgenic plants in plant breeding. Impact of cultivation of
transgenic crops on biodiversity. Role of agri-biotechnology in
crop improvement. Breeding cultivars for marginal lands. Role
of edible oilseeds in agriculture and economy of Pakistan.
Development of low erucic acid and glucosinolate (double low)
varieties in rapeseed and mustard crops.
Resistance breeding. Host-plant genetic resistance. Genetic
and physiological mechanisms of stress tolerance in crop
plants. Major insect pests of important agricultural crops.
Principles and methods of insect control. Entomological
industries; Apiculture, Sericulture and Lac-culture. Types of
agricultural pollution and its management. Mode of action,
hazards and safety measures of insecticides. IPM and
economics of pest management.
Causes, nature of losses and economic importance of plant
diseases, and principles of their control. Economic importance,
transmission and control of plant viruses. Various methods to
control and manage plant diseases. Methods of screening of
crop germplasm for the sources of disease resistance.
Physiological requirements and problems in mushroom
cultivation. Nutritional value of mushroom and remedial
measures of mushroom poisoning.
Classification, propagation, management practices and post
harvest handling of Horticultural crops. Role of tissue culture in
agriculture. Cultivation, production, chemical and
pharmacological properties of medicinal plants. Propagation
methods, management practices and marketing of fruit and
ornamental plants nurseries.
Soil formation and Soil profile. Types of soil, salt affected and
waterlogged soils, and their reclamation and management.
Factors affecting crop growth and growth expression models.
Sources and significance of organic matter in agriculture. Soil
fertility problems in Pakistani soils. Integrated plant nutritional
system. Kinds and levels of soil survey, and application of GIS
and remote sensing in soil survey. Types, control and
management of soil erosion.