Pakistan Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (PCSIR) is executing 12 technical projects across the country at a total cost of Rs 2.4 billion for providing technical assistance and trained manpower to the public and private sectors.
Chairman PCSIR Dr Anwar-ul-Haq said at a briefing here on Monday that these projects are being executed at Peshawar, Islamabad, Skardu, Hyderabad, Karachi, Quetta and Lahore.
He said that 14 other projects costing Rs 800 million would be taken into hand in the next financial year. Despite meagre monetary resources, he said, the PCSIR had successfully completed 16 projects during the last fiscal year at a total cost of Rs 600 million.
In addition to the above, an Institute of Mineral and Metallurgy and Precision System Training Centre are being established at Lahore at a cost of Rs 300 million, he said, adding that such institutes and centres would also be set up later at Gujranwala and Peshawar.
Dr Haq disclosed that the Precision System Training Centre at Karachi had so far successfully produced over 1000 trained work force, of whom 33 percent were self-employed while the remaining were getting better pay compared with other diploma holders of different trades in the private sector.
He said that the principal responsibility of the PCSIR is to provide guidance and technical assistance to the local industry to meet their day-to-day problems.
He said PCSIR scientists are engaged in quality research and are contributing a lot to strengthen the country's industrial base.
Earlier, DG PCSIR Lahore Complex, Dr Wazir Husain Shah briefed the chairman about the progress of the ongoing projects and other research activities being carried out in different sections.