TOBA TEK SINGH: At an international seminar on equine husbandry and breeding GMPs at the University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, on Tuesday, Dera Ismail Khan Agriculture University Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr Masroor ElahiBabar stated there is a lack of breeding stallions in Pakistan and that consequently, steps must be taken to utilise the potential of equines.

According to him, there are 116 million horses in the world, including 57m horses, 50.5m donkeys and 7.9m mules.

According to him, there are 6.7m horses, 5.7m donkeys, and 200,000 mules living in Pakistan. He said the horse is considered a symbol of strength and power around the world.

Horses and mounted warriors have been partners for thousands of years. He listed the problems: a lack of trained manpower; no availability of stallionsemen in countries like Pakistan; higher prices of imported stallion semen; and a shortage of artificial insemination for genetic improvement.

Dean of the Faculty of Animal Husbandry, Prof Dr Qamar Bilal, said that agriculture is the backbone of our economy, while povertyisdirectlylinkedtothe agriculture and livestock sectors. He advocated for increased livestock production through research and pre-animal production. He said that last year, the university arranged one of the world`s largest equine shows with 2,200 stallions.

Animal and Dairy Sciences Director Prof Dr Riaz Ahmad Virk said that man and horse have an endless relationship. He added that a large amount of time and money was invested in breeding top-rate racehorses. Prof Dr Shea Porr from the USA and Johanna Gandorfer from Germany also spoke.

BURNT: An older man was burnt alive and his wife received critical burnwounds when a fire broke out in their room in a locality near a railway level crossing on Chak Jhumra Road in Faisalabad late on Monday.

Rescue 1122 said Anwar Masih and his wife Maryam Bibi were asleep with a gas heater on. When locals and Rescue 1122firefighters extinguished the fire, they found Anwar burnt to death and Maryam seriously burnt.

She was shifted to the Allied Hospital.

Also, three sisters fell unconscious due to suffocating from the heavy smoke of burning wooden coals in their room in a house in the irrigation employees` colony in Faisalabad.

Sidra, Wakeela and Minahal were the daughters of irrigation department official Tanweer Akhtar. They were admitted to the DHQ hospital.

SUICIDE: A man died by suicide on Tuesday.

Rescue 1122 said Usman quarrelled with his parents over a mone-tary issue in Chak 76-GB in Faisalabad and shot himself dead.

Sajid Mahmood was found dead in a canal near Allied Housing Scheme.

The body was fished out by Rescue 1122 divers.

His family told Roshanwala police that he had been missing for thelast one week and someone kidnapped and killed him and dumped the body into the canal as his legs and arms were tied with ropes.

ACCIDENT: A woman died and her son was injured when a tractor-trolley ran over their motorcycle on Tuesday in Faisalabad on Makkoana-Mai Mast ani Bypass.

Anees Akhtar and her son Zargham Hussain of Chak 229-RB were riding a motorcycle when it slipped on the road and was run over by a tractor-trolley coming from the opposite directions. The injured was shifted to the DHQ Hospital.