Small farmers of flood-hit areas: government to provide Rs 14 billion as one-time assistance

Government will provide Rs 14 billion as one-time assistance to small farmers in flood-hit areas to boost agriculture in the country, officials at Ministry of Food and Agriculture (Minfa) said. They said under the scheme a grant of Rs 2,400 will be given per acre for 50 kg of wheat seed and one bag of urea to small farmers holding up to 12.5 acres of land in the flood-hit districts.
According to officials under the package 50 kg of wheat seed would cost Rs 1,500 and one urea bag Rs 900. The total estimated cost of the package is likely to touch Rs 14 billion, which would be equally shared by federal and provincial governments, sources maintained. Earlier Minfa had proposed a grant of Rs 6,100 per acre for the farmers having up to 12.5 acres of land, but the proposal was rejected by the government.
Under the scheme, farmers holding up to 12.5 acres of land would get approximately Rs 30,000 for certified seed and fertiliser, sources said. They added that the Punjab Seed Department would provide hybrid certified wheat seed to other provinces for distribution among the farmers in the flood-affected areas.
Sources further said that farmers holding up to 25 acres of land would be entitled to obtain loan at a discount rate of eight percent. The federal government would pay the remaining 5.5 percent mark-up as the total interest on the loan is 13.5 percent.
Officials said that State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has launched a concessional finance guarantee scheme to encourage farmers of flood-hit areas to cultivate more canola during the Rabi season. The SBP has allocated Rs 500 million for the scheme. These concessionary loans are being provided to the farmers by commercial banks, they added.
Agriculture was the worst affected sector by the recent floods, which damaged standing crops on 2.3 million hectares. Total damage to agriculture sector is estimated at around Rs 281 billion, officials said. According to Minfa there would be extensive reduction in the productivity of all kinds of Kharif crops, including rice, sugarcane, cotton, maize and pulses. Cotton was the most affected crop with an estimated loss of Rs 79.270 billion followed by Paddy Rs 61 billion, sugarcane Rs 26.045 billion and other crops suffered a loss of Rs 115.245 billion.