highlights

Artificial Intelligence support started in South Punjab Secretariat.

In a pioneering move for good governance, the South Punjab Secretariat, under the leadership of Additional Chief Secretary Fuad Hashim Rabbani, has become the first government institution in Pakistan to decide to adopt artificial intelligence (AI) applications for service delivery.
An awareness session was held on Tuesday, presided over by Fuad Hashim Rabbani and featuring a demonstration by AI Consultant Dr. Athar Mansoor, who introduced secretaries, special secretaries, of all departments in South Punjab to the potential of AI in streamlining public service delivery. The event was attended by prominent figures from academia and government, including Secretary Agriculture Saqib Ali Ateel, Secretary Services Engineer Amjad Shoaib Khan Tareen, Vice Chancellor Emerson University Muhammad Ramzan, and Professors Dr. Shafqat Saeed, Dr. Alamgir Akhtar, Dr. Khurram Mubeen, from Nawaz Sharif Agriculture University, Dr Asad Naseer and Dr. Shoaib from Bahauddin Zakariya University Multan. Agriculture experts from Extension, Plant Protection, Pesticide Testing Laboratory, and Cotton Research Institute Multan also attended the session.
Additional Chief Secretary South Punjab Fuad Hashim Rabbani, while addressing the session, emphasized AI’s role in traffic management, poverty eradication, and agricultural development, particularly in enhancing crop yields and optimizing pesticide use, livestock, and health. He announced plans for AI graduates’ internships in the agriculture department and the expansion of AI applications to health, education, and traffic control.
He directed that a team comprising government officials, professors, and students will develop an integrated AI strategy with pilot projects in all departments for implementation in South Punjab within sixty days. Mr. Rabbani stressed that AI will enhance efficiency, transparency, and accountability in administrative departments while urging researchers to explore AI’s potential for national progress.
Vice Chancellor Ramzan announced the start of the BS AI Faculty at Emerson University and offered university services and support for AI initiatives in the government departments in South Punjab. Secretary Agriculture Saqib Ali Ateel said that the Agriculture Department South Punjab has already started using online systems to monitor cotton crop pests, launched a website, and taken other steps to integrate AI in public service delivery. He also said that MNSUA is developing various models for precision agriculture, prototype development, soil fertility, crop health, fruit ripening, and cattle disease detection.