The Punjab government is spending Rs one billion to overcome food crisis and attaining self-sufficiency by adopting modern scientific methodology in agriculture sector. This was stated by Chief Executive, Punjab Agriculture Research Board (PARB) Dr Mubarik Ali while talking to APP here on Sunday.
He said the whole world is facing food scarcity including Pakistan, therefore, the Punjab government is focusing on getting maximum yield of crops within the minimum input. However, the agriculture research system in the province is being corrected and put on the right track in order to give impetus to the agriculture sector which remains one of the pivots of the economy, he added.
Dr Mubarik said that PARB had received 161 research proposals from national and international agriculture research institutions to optimise agriculture resources particularly fertilisers and improved quality seed and promote farm mechanisation and plant protection.
The board will pay Rs 1 billion to researchers as consultation charges to the institutions, which would carry, out research work on crops, he added. The government spends Rs 18 billion annually on subsidy of fertilisers which is too much amount, he added and suggested that if government provide direct subsidy to farmers on agriculture tools and machinery, the cost of subsidy can be decreased to Rs 4 billion annually.