The business community of southern Punjab has proposed to the government to develop a policy to attract the country's middle-class to engage in backyard farming. They said that the US govt has been protecting farmers against unpredictable hardships such as bad weather since the 1930s, when drought and the great depression devastated the nation's agriculture industry.
Today, agricultural subsidies and insurance cost to US tax payers about $20 billion annually. President of MCCI, Mian Fareed Mughis'A Sheikh said that govt should not withdraw subsidies in agriculture sector under the pressure of WTO. United States, European Union and other developed countries were paying subsidies to farmers to compensate them.
He said that India was giving subsidies to its farmers but it was raising objections on Pakistan which had already withdrawn maximum subsidy. In such situation the Indian farmers would be in a position to supply their products at cheaper prices with the help of govt financial support (subsidies). Consequently, export of rice, wheat, sugar, maize from India will be available at cheaper prices in the international markets as compared to Pakistani rice. Pakistani exporters will not be in a position to compete Indian exporters on the base of subsidies besides WTO and International Monetary Fund put condition on Pakistan not to provide subsidies on agriculture produces.