PUTRAJAYA, Nov 28 –– The proposal to revert the name of Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) to its original name, Universiti Pertanian Malaysia, will be brought to the Cabinet for deliberation, said Agriculture and Food Security Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Sabu.

Mohamad said that he would personally present the proposal at an upcoming Cabinet meeting, considering the current national priority on food security and advancing the country’s agricultural sector.

"I intend to do so (revert the name) because the original name of Universiti Putra was Universiti Pertanian. Returning to the name Universiti Pertanian seems fitting.

"Perhaps when the name was changed, we did not consider issues like climate change. Now, agriculture has become a global issue. The UN (United Nations) and everyone else are discussing agriculture,” he said.

Mohamad told this to the media after delivering a keynote address and moderating a session on food security during the seventh parallel session of the Malaysia Ideas Convention (MyIDEAS), coordinated by UPM, here today.

For the record, the university’s name was changed from Universiti Pertanian Malaysia to Universiti Putra Malaysia on April 3, 1997, to reflect its status as a higher education institution offering a broader range of programmes beyond agriculture, particularly in science and information technology.

UPM currently has 14 faculties offering various programmes related to agriculture and food security, including smart farming and artificial intelligence (AI) applications in agriculture. –– Bernama