Agricultural Research Institute, Tarnab, Peshawar (ARI-T), is situated fifteen kilometer towards East from Peshawar City on the main Great Trunk Road. The Institute was established as Agricultural Experiments Station in 1908. The Institute is the fountainhead of agricultural development in the Province and all research and development institutions in the Province owes its existence to this Institu
te. Currently this Institute is the center point for Agricultural Research System in the Province. The ARI-T is engaged in research in both field and horticultural crops. There are seventy scientists working on various aspects of agriculture of the central valley plains also characterized as the Central Agro-Ecological Zone. The Institute has 288 technical staff assisting the scientists. The Institute hosts laboratories of biotechnology, germplasm repository, pesticides residue analysis, plant pathology, entomology, soil chemistry, bio-chemistry, seed technology and food technology. The research programs related to horticulture include, fruits, floriculture, citrus and vegetables while field crops research programs are cereals, oilseed and fodder. The experimental area of the Institute is 140 acres including mother blocks and orchards of pipeline varieties of various species of fruits. Following is the mandate of the Institute:
1. Develop high yielding and pest resistant varieties suitable for cultivation in the Central Agro-Ecological Zone of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
2. Devise crop production technologies which maximize productivity through sustainable use of natural resources and are cost-effective.
3. Minimize post-harvest losses through appropriate pre-and post-harvest technologies, value addition and food preservation.
4. Provide hands-on trainings facilities to the growers of the area, agriculture extension, and other stakeholders.
5. Generate and disseminate the relevant knowledge about agriculture development through tarinings, shows and melas, farmers’ days, seminars and workshops.
