Wheat is the main staple food in the world, so it is the backbone of food security. Drought not only affects growth and development but also ultimately has a severe impact on the overall productivity of crop plants. Some bacteria are capable of producing exopolysaccharides (EPS) as a survival mechanism, along with other metabolites, which help them survive in stressful conditions. The present study was conducted with the aim of inducing drought stress tolerance in wheat through EPS-producing plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR). In this regard, a series of laboratory bioassays were conducted with the aim to isolating, characterizing, and screening the EPS-producing PGPR capable of improving wheat growth under limited water conditions. Thirty rhizobacterial strains (LEW1–LEW30) were isolated from the rhizosphere of wheat. Ten isolates with EPS-producing ability were quantitatively tested for EPS production and IAA production ability. Four of the most efficient EPS-producing strains (LEW3, LEW9, LEW16, and LEW28) were evaluated for their drought tolerance ability along with quantitative production of EPS and IAA under polyethylene glycol (PEG-6000)-induced drought stress. The jar experiment was conducted under gnotobiotic conditions to examine the drought-tolerant wheat genotypes, and two wheat varieties (Johar-16, and Gold-16) were selected for further experiments. The selected varieties were inoculated with EPS-producing rhizobacterial strains and grown under control conditions at different stress levels (0, 2, 4, and 6% PEG-6000). The strain LEW16 showed better results for improving root morphology and seedling growth in both varieties. The maximum increase in germination, growth parameters, percentage, root diameter, root surface area, and root colonization was recorded in Johar-16 by inoculating LEW16 at 6% PEG-6000. Plant growth-promoting traits were tested on the top-performing strains (LEW3, LEW9, and LEW16). Through 16S rRNA sequencing, these strains were identified as Chryseobacterium sp. (LEW3), Acinetobacter sp. (LEW9), and Klebsiella sp. (LEW16), and they showed positive results for phosphorous and zinc solubilization as well as hydrogen cyanide (HCN) production. The partial sequencing results were submitted to the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) under the accession numbers MW829776, MW829777, and MW829778. These strains are recommended for their evaluation as potential bioinoculants for inducing drought stress tolerance in wheat.

Drought is an important factor which limits growth of sugarcane. To elucidate the physiological and biochemical mechanisms of tolerance, a pot experiment was conducted at Sugarcane Research Institute, Kaiyuan, China. Two genotypes (Yuetang 93-159-sensitive and Yunzhe 05-51-tolerant), were subjected to three treatments; 70±5% (control), 50±5% (moderate drought) and 30±5% (severe drought) of soil field capacity. The results demonstrated that drought induced considerable decline in morpho-physiological, biochemical and anatomical parameters of both genotypes, with more pronounced detrimental effects on Yuetang 93–159 than on Yunzhe 05–51. Yunzhe 05–51 exhibited more tolerance by showing higher dry biomass, photosynthesis and antioxidant enzyme activities. Compared with Yuetang 93–159, Yunzhe 05–51 exhibited higher soluble sugar, soluble protein and proline contents under stress. Yunzhe 05–51 illustrated comparatively well-composed chloroplast structure under drought stress. It is concluded that the tolerance of Yunzhe 05–51 was attributed to improved antioxidant activities, osmolyte accumulation and enhanced photosynthesis. These findings may provide valuable information for future studies on molecular mechanism of tolerance.

Exhaustive crops such as cotton require potassium (K) in copious amounts as compared to other crops. High yielding cultivars in cotton-wheat cropping system, have further increased its demand in cotton growing areas of Pakistan. As cotton is grown in arid and semiarid areas, therefore often prone to water deficiency. The reproductive growth particularly flowering and boll setting are highly sensitive to low soil water potentials, where enough K supply can play a vital role. In this two-year field studies, three cultivars (early, mid and late maturing) were cultivated at two K fertilizer levels 100, 200 kg K ha⁻¹ along with control with no K fertilizer application at two irrigation levels. In first irrigation level, water was applied as per full irrigation schedule, while in water deficit irrigation water was applied at deficit irrigation schedule started after flowering till harvesting. It has been revealed that K application has impact on boll setting as well as seed cotton yield, however early and mid-maturing cultivars are more responsive to K fertilization. Furthermore, irrigation level had significant impact against K fertilization and relatively better response was observed in deficit irrigation as compared to full irrigation. Nevertheless, fiber quality parameters were unaffected by K fertilization. Considering the best benefit cost ratio under water deficiency, it is concluded that 100 kg K₂O ha⁻¹ should be applied at the time of seed bed preparation for economical seed-cotton yield of early maturing Bt cotton.

Pakistan faces challenges in both food and energy security. Indeed, extensive literature suggests that food and energy security are interdependent. While acknowledging that food security is still a primary concern for Pakistan, energy security is also a major issue. It is crucial to develop sustainable energy sources for energy production. Among sustainable sources, biomass is a promising source that can be effectively used for environmentally friendly energy production. This article addresses the energy issues and potential solutions using crop residues, non-edible energy crops, and animal and municipal solid wastes in Pakistan. The current research challenges, relevant industries, opportunities, and the future share of energy production derived from renewable and sustainable sources are emphasized with a focus on the potential of biomass energy. This article shows that Pakistan has considerable potential to develop bioenergy crops on marginal lands without compromising food security, with considerable greenhouse gas (GHG) benefits. Pakistan has vast biomass resources, including crop residues, animal waste, municipal solid waste, and forest residues, which collectively produce 230 billion tons of biomass annually. There are about 72 million bovines (cows and buffaloes), 81 million tons per year of crop biomass, and about 785 million birds in poultry farms across the country. Land that is currently non-productive could be used for energy crops, and this has the potential to produce 2500–3000 MW of energy. The utilization of waste cooking oil and fats is the most economically feasible option for obtaining biodiesel due to its easy and almost free availability in Pakistan. Systematic management is needed to collect this huge quantity of waste cooking oil and efficiently convert it to biodiesel. Similarly, molasses may be a promising source for bioethanol production. Furthermore, this study suggests that Pakistan’s energy policies need to be amended to ensure that the energy supply meets the demand. In the future, massive energy projects on biomass-based bioenergy need to be implemented in Pakistan. To achieve its bioenergy potential, Pakistan needs to develop incentive-based bioenergy technologies. Moreover, this objective can only be achieved in the country by initiating R&D projects to promote advanced biomass conversion technologies, such as biogas plants and combustion systems.

Intensive agricultural practices lower soil fertility, particularly micronutrients which are rarely applied to soils as chemical fertilizers. Micronutrient deficiency in soils results in inferior product quality and micronutrient malnutrition in humans. Application of compost to soil may improve crop yields and quality by enhancing macro- and micronutrients availability, enhancing soil microbial population, and improving soil physicochemical properties. Poultry mortality compost (PMC) was prepared by decomposing dead poultry birds with poultry litter in an aerated bin through indigenous microbial populations. The prepared PMC was used as an amendment in three field experiments during 2017–18 and 2018–19 to investigate the effect on yield and nutritional quality of potato, carrot, and radish. In these field trials, two compost levels, i.e., 1250 kg ha^-1(PMC1) and 1850 kg ha^-1(PMC2) were compared with the control (no compost application). The results revealed a 10–25% increase in root or tuber yield at PMC2 compared to that in the control. A substantial increase in Zn, Fe, and Mn concentrations in vegetable root/tubers was also observed. Organic matter content and microbial biomass were improved in the soil with PMC application leading to better soil health and better nutrient availability. These studies led us to conclude that the application of PMC not only enhances the vegetable yield but also biofortifies vegetables with micronutrients such as Zn, Fe, and Mn extending agricultural sustainability and eliminating micronutrient malnutrition in humans.