Pak-US Strategic Partnership in the War on Terror to Curb Militant Bloodbath

Pakistan’s involvement in the US war on terrorism was a tragic decision. No option was left for the ruling elite of Pakistan except to join the global war on terrorism and to take a U-turn from the support of Taliban’s regime in Afghanistan which was duly recognized by Pakistan’s government in 1996. It was expected by the policy-makers of the US that the alliance with Pakistan would provide extraordinary strength in combating the Al-Qaeda and other affiliated conglomerates in Afghanistan as well as in borderland area. However, after fifteen years of war, the alliance has enfeebled despite their mutual understanding regarding the objectives envisaged in the Strategic Partnership. The war on terrorism has now been escalated from Afghanistan to Pakistan and it has provided space to religious extremism, militancy, intolerance, ethnic division and sectarianism. There is no denial to the fact that religious extremism and terrorism are common threat and have damaged both the countries yet Pakistan has sacrificed more than the US in terms of human and material loss. Nevertheless, blame game and trust deficit is on the rise from both sides. This article focuses first on the joint ventures that the US and Pakistan mutually initiated to curb militant bloodbath in Afghanistan as well as in the border region. Secondly, it will explore factors responsible for increasing trust deficit between the partners. The study will not only provide deep understanding about the prevailing issues between Pakistan and the US but will also give true pictures to streamline the methodology for negotiating with each other in  future.

The Influence of Plant Spacing, Floral Buds, Seed Extraction Time on Okra Saeed Production and Retention of Quality During Storage

A series of experiments were organized to investigate the “Influence of plant spacing, floral buds, seed extraction time on okra seed production and retention of quality during storage” during the years 2012-2014 at the University of Agriculture, Peshawar. The experiment on influence of plant spacing (20, 30 and 40 cm) on the growth and seed production of five okra (Abelmoschus esculentus L. Moench) varieties i.e. Sabz Pari, Arka Anamika, Pusa Sawani, Punjab Selection and Green Star revealed that Arka Anamika variety had the maximum plant height (136.8 cm), number of branches per plant (1.42), number of pods per plant (26.33), number of seeds per pod (60.67), seed weight per pod (3.87 g) and seed yield (4.54 t ha-1). The plant spacing of 20 cm resulted in the maximum plant height (136.92 cm) but planting of okra plants at 40 cm plant spacing resulted in the maximum seeds per pod (67.28), seed weight per pod (4.61 g), 100 seed weight (6.87 g) and seed yield (4.42 t ha-1) as well as significant variations in the seed weight per pod due to varieties x spacing interaction. The study of floral buds (8, 11, 14, 17 and 20) retention on the plant growth, seed yield and quality attributes of five okra varieties i.e. Sabz Pari, Arka Anamika, Pusa Sawani, Punjab Selection and Green Star revealed significant variations in different varieties except mean hard seeds. The maximum plant height (131.65 cm), number of branches per plant (2.04), number of seeds per pod (65.30), seed weight per pod (4.29 g), seed yield (2.37 t ha-1) was observed in variety Arka Anamika. The number of leaves per plant (39.88) was the highest in Sabz Pari, while the 100 seed weight was maximum (7.55 g) in Pusa Sawani, followed by Arka Anamika (7.48 g). The number of floral buds retained for seed production also significantly influenced the vegetative growth and seed yield. The retention of 8 floral buds resulted in the maximum plant height (128.1 cm), number of branches per plant (2.16), number of seeds per pod (69.72), seed weight per pod (4.29 g), but the minimum seed yield (1.51 t ha-1). Whereas, the highest seed yield (2.77 t ha-1) and hard seed percentage (26.77%) was recorded with 20 floral buds retained for seed production. The varieties x floral buds interaction significantly affected the plant height and seed yield. The plant height was maximum (134.47 cm) in Arka Anamika with 8 floral buds retained and minimum in Sabz Pari (109.9 cm) with 20 buds retained. The maximum seed yield (3.69 t ha-1) in Arka Anamika was observed with 20 floral buds retained for seed production, whereas the minimum seed yield (1.42 t ha-1) was recorded in Punjab Selection with 8 floral buds retained for seed production. The experiment on influence of seed extraction time, packing materials and storage durations on the okra seed quality was conducted by extracting seeds of okra at 0, 15 and 30 days after pods harvesting, packed in aluminum, polythene, cloth, gunny and paper bags and stored for 0, 3, 6, and 9 months. The seed quality attributes such as seed x moisture content, percent germination, length of seedling, seedling dry weight, vigor index, electrical conductivity and hexanal production were assessed. It was observed that the seed extracted immediately (0 days) after pods harvesting had the maximum mean seed moisture content (13.38%), hexanal production (12.96 μg kg-1) and electrical conductivity (125.66 μs cm-1) but the least germination percentage (73.75%), length of (20.43 cm), dry seedling weight (17.09 mg/10 seedlings) and seedling vigor index (1521.3). By contrast extracting the seeds 30 days after pods harvest resulted in the minimum seed moisture content (11.45%), hexanal production (6.80 μg kg-1) and electrical conductivity (59.76 μs cm-1) as well as the highest germination percentage (93.58%), seedling length (30.74 cm), seedling dry weight (26.35 mg/10 seedlings) and seedling vigor index (2881). Among the packing materials, the maximum mean moisture content (12.37%) was recorded with seed stored in aluminum bags, but the maximum percent germination (88.33%), length of seedling (27.98 cm), seedling dry weight (23.94 mg) and seedling vigor index (2509.9); least hexanal production (8.69 μg kg-1) and electrical conductivity (77.13 μs cm-1) were recorded with seed packed in polythene bags. The seed quality attributes declined with increasing storage durations. The seed moisture content, germination percentage, seedling length, dry seedling weight and vigor index decreased while hexanal production and electrical conductivity increased with increasing storage duration. The experiment on the influence of packing materials and storage durations at room temperature on okra seed quality was conducted by packing the variety Arka Anamika seed in aluminum, polythene, cloth, gunny and paper bags and stored for 0, 3, 6, 9, 12, 15 and 18 month durations at room temperature. The data revealed that the packing materials and storage durations had significant effect on the seed quality attributes. Among the different packing materials, the maximum seed moisture content (10.69%), germination (89.52%), seedling length (30.18 cm), dry seedling weight (25.96 mg), seedling vigor index (2713.7) and least hexanal accumulation (18.17 μg kg-1) as well as electrical conductivity (92.23 μs cm-1) was recorded in seeds packed in cloth bags, that were at par with aluminum bags in most of the quality attributes evaluated. The data regarding seed quality attributes in relation to seed extraction time revealed that the highest seed moisture (12.89%), seedling length (33.06 cm) and seedling dry weight (28.49 mg/10 seedlings); as well as the least hexanal content (0.0 μg kg-1) and electrical conductivity (61.70 μs cm-1) were recorded in fresh seeds, while the maximum germination percentage (94%), and seedling vigor index (3055.8) were observed in seeds stored for 3 months. Beyond, 3 months storage, all the seed quality attributes decreased with concomitant increase in hexanal content and electrical conductivity. Thus, the minimum seed quality attributes such as seed moisture content (8.68%). germination (71.67%), seedling length (24.24 cm), seedling dry weight (20.37 mg) and seedling vigor index (1752.2); and the maximum hexanal accumulation (40.40 μg kg-1) and electrical conductivity (154.0 μs cm-1) were recorded after 18 months storage at room temperature. To determine the influence of packing materials, storage conditions and durations on the okra seed quality, variety Arka Anamika was packed in aluminum, paper and polythene bags and stored in cold, refrigerated and room temperatures for 0, 3, 6, 9, 12, 15 and 18 months. The data revealed that the packing materials, storage conditions and storage durations had significant effect on the seed quality. Among the different packing materials, the highest seed moisture content (12.87%) was recorded in seed stored in paper bags and maximum germination percentage (90.79%) was recorded in xi seeds stored in polythene bags. The polythene and aluminum bags had higher but at par seedling length (30.63 and 30.52 cm), dry seedling weight (26.23 and 26.09 mg), seedling vigor index (2703.8 and 2879.5) and lower hexanal content (16.47 and 77.11 μg kg-1) and electrical conductivity (86.30 and 89.22 μs cm-1) as compared to the seed stored in paper bags. The seed stored in cold storage condition had the highest seed moisture content (12.56%), germination (86.98%), seedling length (29.76 cm), seedling dry weight (25.47 mg) and vigor index (2616.8) as well as the least hexanal production (19.41 μg kg-1) and electrical conductivity (98.63 μs cm-1). The data on seed quality attributes in relation to storage durations revealed that the highest germination percentage (93.52%) and seedling vigor index (3042.6) was recorded in seed stored for 3 months. The highest seed moisture (12.91%), seedling length (33.02 cm), seedling dry weight (28.65 mg) and least hexanal content (0.00 μg kg-1) and electrical conductivity of the seed (61.29 μs cm-1) was recorded in the fresh seed. The seed storage for 18 months resulted in the minimum seed moisture (11.11%), germination percentage (72.22%), seedling length (24.48 cm), dry seedling weight (20.58 mg/10 seedlings), vigor index (1801.3) and the highest hexanal content (44.77 μg kg-1) and electrical conductivity (157.69 μs cm-1) of the okra seed." xml:lang="en_US