Vice Chancellor, University of Agriculture Faisalabad Professor Dr Iqrar Ahmad Khan on Monday called for ensuring quality and disease-resilient seeds in fields in order to increase productivity and farmer income that will bring prosperity in the country. He was talking to a delegation of Pakistan Kissan Ittehad led by Secretary General M Umair Masood at his chamber. He said the government was taking the revolutionary measures to uplift the sector and address the problems of farming community.
He said agricultural sector is the backbone of our economy and contributes 21 percent to the Gross Domestic Product. He said poverty alleviation was directly linked to the sector as majority of population was associated with agriculture. Lauding the government's initiatives, he said the government had brought 'Kissan Package to give relief to farming community, enabling them to cultivate the crops and to address their problems. He said the government had reduced the prices of inputs and lower down the prices of electricity for the farmers that will cut the cost of production. He said Punjab agricultural policy was being revamped to address the problems of the farming community and increase the productivity for the population. He said farmers were facing the different challenges including less profit, low productivity, water scarcity and seed etc.