Khyber Pakhtunkwa, Minister for Agriculture, Arbab Ayub Jan has said the provincial government has retrieved thousands of acres of fertile agricultural lands of research farms in district D.l.Khan from illegal occupation. The minister further said that laws would be made to stop the unlawful practice in the province.
Talking to newsmen at media centre, here on Monday, he said the former government had provided about 8,770 Kanal cultivatable lands on lease in district D.I.Khan, which was successfully retrieved from occupants. He informed that the government had constituted an inquiry commission to investigate the illegal occupation of the agricultural lands in D.I.Khan.
He said that the inquiry commission had suspended four responsible officials, including Executive district officer (EDO), Agriculture Inayatullah Baloch, District officer (DO) agriculture, Ehsanullah Khan Gandapur, and farms managers, Sardar Ali, Karim Nawaz Baloch, and Salahuddin. The minister informed that the government had also cancelled the lease to vacate huge acres of productive agricultural lands in D.l. Khan, but the occupiers didn't retrieved by taking stay order from court
He said about 8,770 Kanal illegal occupied lands had been vacated from land mafia in D.I. Khan. He expressed the hope that the remaining land would be vacated forthwith. He appreciated the efforts of the commissioner and police D.I.Khan for playing their roles in retrieving occupied agriculture lands in the area. "We had faced enormous difficulties to get the lands vacate from the occupiers," he maintained.
He said the Agriculture Engineering Department had extended technical assistance to take measures to vacate lands completely. When asked about occupier's affiliation with any political party, he said that the government would take action against the occupiers and land mafia. The inquiry commission had already indicted officials and terminated their services. "Those who are responsible will be dealt according to law," he maintained.
The minister said that the provincial government will make a proper legislation to undermine illegal occupation of fertile agricultural lands in the province about the production of seeds, he said that the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has become a seed self-sufficient province. About 5,000 tons of seeds had been distributed in the province. Around 60 percent lands are uncultivable in the province, he informed.
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