Federal Minister for Food and Agriculture Nazar Muhammad Gondal on Wednesday said that government would provide 10,000 more tractors to the growers to enhance agricultural productivity across the country. Talking to APP here, the minister said that under the second phase of Benazir Tractor Scheme, 10,000 tractors would be provided to farmers by June this year.
Government is determined to mechanising the agri-sector in the country by introducing latest technologies giving technical and financial assistance to the growers. Besides this, he said that government was focusing on high yield seed varieties, specially wheat, cotton and rice to further increase per acre crop production to achieve autarchy in food grains.
Meanwhile, sharing the achievements of the democratic government during its first two years particularly in the agricultural sector, the minister said that due to farmers' friendly policies of the government surplus wheat and rice crops were produced in the country. "Other crops like cotton, maize and minor crops, including pulses were also increased as compared to previous years", he remarked.
Before PPP coming into power, the government was importing wheat to fulfil the domestic requirements, he said and added now the country was not only self-sufficient in food grains but also in position to export. "It only become possible due to the pro-farmers and friendly policies of the government to protect and safeguard the interest of the growers and to introducing proper mechanism for their crop procurement and storage, he added.
The government, he said made a record increase in the support price of wheat, ie Rs 950/40 kg for year 2008-09 that reflected farmers friendly policy of the government. "Timely announcement of this attractive Support Price was the most important step of present government that encouraged the farmers to grow more wheat", he remarked.
To maintain the momentum of growth in wheat production, the government retained the support price of Rs 950/40 kg for the current year in spite of the declining trend international price of wheat, he said. Nazar Gondal said that crop shifting was a major issue which was creating imbalances in crop production in the country adding that due to intervention of the government the growers are now receiving better prices of their out-put and stopped crop shifting.
He said that this year wheat, rice, cotton and sugarcane growers have received good prices of their produce which, he added that would encourage them to produce more crops for the next years to maximise their profit ratio as well. He expressed the hope that sugarcane production would be enhanced during next growing season as the cane growers received good prices this year and government has also bound the millers to pay them on spot for their good.