LAHORE: Chief Minister Punjab’s “Kissan Card” being given to farmers to access ready credit for procuring crop inputs will become operational from October 15, 2024, before sowing the coming wheat crop.
The owners of 1 to 12.5 acres of agricultural land will be able to get interest-free loans from 30,000 to 100,000 on these cards for meeting their needs about sowing.
This was disclosed by Punjab Minister for Agriculture Syed Ashiq Hussain Kirmani, while inaugurating the distribution of Kissan cards to those growers who were approved by the banking sector from Faisalabad.
The Minister said farmers will be able to purchase seeds, fertilizers and other agricultural inputs from 2,160 registered dealers across the province with Kissan Card. He further maintained that Chief Minister Punjab is determined for agricultural development. This Kissan Card will be a game changer for the prosperity of farmers.
Secretary Agriculture Iftikhar Ali Sahoo on this occasion said that special teams have been formed for manual verification and messages have also been sent to the farmers due to the non-computerized locations where the farmers were having difficulty in obtaining the Kissan Card.
He further said that Kissan Card will prove to be the identity of the farmers. Under the government of Punjab, subsidies will be provided to farmers for various schemes through the Kissan Card. As many as 137 delivery centres have been established at the tehsil level for the delivery of Kissan Cards.
The Minister also talked to the farmers and said under the Chief Minister Punjab Green Tractor Scheme, 9,500 tractors will be distributed to the farmers through transparent balloting. The Punjab government will provide a subsidy of 9.5 billion rupees in this regard.
On this occasion, the Minister for Agriculture and Secretary inspected the front desk and delivery point and made a detailed review of the farmer’s data entering the process and the Kissan Card delivery process at the centre. Later, the Agriculture Minister reviewed the agricultural research work in the department of wheat, rice, oilseeds, pulses, horticulture and fodder at Ayub Agricultural Research Institute Faisalabad and expressed satisfaction with it.
Chief Scientist Ayub Agricultural Research Institute Faisalabad Dr. Sajid Rehman and agricultural scientists gave a detailed briefing to the Minister and Secretary of Agriculture about the ongoing activities in various fields of Ayub Agricultural Research Institute Faisalabad and told that the agricultural scientists of Ayub Research have introduced more than 705 new varieties of different crops, fruits, vegetables and herbs through their creative efforts.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2024