HYDERABAD: Govern-ment of Sindh to provide 80 percent subsidy on the high-efficiency irrigation system to farmers across Sindh and biosaline agriculture to be adopted as an official agriculture practice to combating the water scarcity problems in the province.

This was announced by Abdul Rahim Soomro, Secretary of Agriculture during a one day conference on Biosaline Agriculture in Arid Areas of Sindh organized by the District Administration of Tharparkar, Sindh Engro Coal Mining Company, Agriculture Department, and other partners.

The conference gathered government and private sector experts, academicians, farmer organizations, development sector organizations, and media to discuss the potential of biosaline agriculture opportunities in combating water availability woes.

The conference unanimously passed recommendations for policy actions for the Government of Sindh to translate them into policy actions. The conference said saline water resources of Thar may be considered an opportunity and the experience of organizations like Thar Foundation may be utilized for furthering the practice across the region.

Salt tolerant plants should be introduced along with regular water quality monitoring may be done, linkages between the public and private sector, academia, and farmers to be developed for experience sharing and introduction of the high-efficiency irrigation system may be installed in Tharparkar, the establishment of nurseries and creating demand of biosaline agriculture products by growing salt eating halophyte crops and fish farms on saline water should be practice in all arid areas of Sindh.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021