Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz on Thursday said the government is expecting a bumper wheat crop this year and it will ensure speedy procurement so that farmers get fair return of their produce. The Prime Minister was chairing a meeting here on Thursday to review the wheat situation and balanced use of fertilisers in the country.
He said government has adopted a holistic approach to improve agricultural productivity, introduce value addition and augment income of the farmers. The Prime Minister directed the provincial governments and PASSCO to complete arrangements for procurement of wheat.
He said that as very good wheat crop is expected this year, export of surplus wheat will be allowed. The Prime Minister said there would be no restriction on inter-provincial, inter-district movement of the wheat. The Prime Minister was informed that Punjab government has confirmed that they will buy wheat from the farmers up to the last available grain.
Sindh government will procure at least 0.7 million tons of wheat and PASSCO will buy 1.3 million tons of wheat. While reviewing the fertiliser situation, the Prime Minister said the government's decision to give subsidy on the phosphatic and potassic fertilisers was well received by the farming community and there are bright prospects for enhanced wheat productivity due to balanced use of fertilisers.
He said keeping in view the successful results the government approved continuation of the policy and a high-powered committee is administering and monitoring the implementation of the scheme. The Prime Minister said the government will continue to give incentives to promote balanced use of fertilisers.
Minister for Food and Agricultural Sikandar Hayat Bosan informed the Prime Minister that this year very good wheat crop is expected and Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Livestock is taking steps to ensure procurement of wheat in an efficient manner.
Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Livestock in their presentation informed the Prime Minister that DAP off-take during the current Rabi was around 1,126,000 tons, indicating an increase of more than 40 percent of Rabi 2005-06 off-take of 760,000 tons. Phosphatic - Nitrogen ratio improved from 1:3.1 to 1:2 during Rabi, which is expected to have positive impact on the agricultural output.