RAWALPINDI - Pir Mehr Ali Shah Arid Agriculture University Rawalpindi (PMAS-AAUR) Vice Chancellor, Prof Dr Rai Niaz Ahmad, said that mandate of the university was to produce high-quality agricultural scientists and to form an organised scientific infrastructure for teaching and research for the development of dry land regions of the country, thus minimising the income gap between the rich and poor and irrigated and arid areas.  He said this while talking to a delegation visited the varsity, informed spokesman here on Friday. The delegation comprised Muhammad Jehanazeb Khan, Secretary Energy Department, government of the Punjab, Tariq Nawaz Janjua, Joint Secretary Ministry of Education and Trainings, government of Pakistan, Dr Muhammad Abbas Chaudhry, VC University of Engineering Taxila, Farouque A Khokhar, Director Finance/ Registrar, Institute of SPACE Technology, Muhammad Hanif Abbasi, PML-N MNA, Raja Muhammad Hanif, MPA/Syndicate member of PMAS-AAUR, Muhammad Akhtar Abbas, SSP and Fan Jian, Vice President Zhongxing Telecom, Pakistan (Pvt) Ltd. Here on Thursday at PMAS-AAUR.The PMAS VC also gave future plan of the university, its development projects and research activities. In the meeting it was discussed that collaborative research and teaching programmes are being developed with the sister institutions for better teaching and research facilities for the students especially required for the Photohar region’s farmers. Dr Rai Niaz, while talking to Jehanzeb Khan, discussed the opportunities of rainwater harvesting and then switchover its irrigation system on solar energy. Jehanzeb Khan said that switching over to the solar system for energy was the need of the hour mainly for this area as this was the only sources of energy at the moment. He also said that Energy Department Punjab would support PMAS-AAUR for shifting on Solar Powered Technology. VC said that university would not only adapt the solar system but in future it would help the area farmers to set their irrigation system on to solar energy so that they could meet their requirements. Through this the production would also be increased and government could earn foreign exchange.In meeting with Muhammad Hanif Abbasi, MNA and Raja Muhammad Hanif MPA, Vice Chancellor discussed various issues, particularly development projects of the University. Abbasi and Hanif assured that they were ready and available at any time to extend their cooperation for the university.