Agriculture is the backbone of our economy and key to poverty alleviation, Pakistan Engineering Council Chairman Jawed Salim Qureshi said on Wednesday. Addressing the annual convention of Pakistan Society of Agricultural Engineers arranged by Faculty of Agriculture Engineering University of Agriculture Faisalabad, the PEC chariman said collaborated efforts were needed to stand by the farming community, downtrodden segment of the society, and promoting modern and smart technologies in the agriculture sector for increasing per acre yield.