Punjab likely to propose Rs 1,000 wheat price

[LRE]

Punjab likely to propose Rs 1,000 wheat price



Thursday, September 11, 2008
By Jawwad Rizvi

LAHORE

THE Punjab government is likely to propose Rs 1,000 per muand as the wheat support price to the federal government for the coming season, The News has learnt.

Because of the increase in input costs, the Punjab government is working for a substantial increase in wheat support price this year. The move is aimed at increasing wheat production.

The government has said its wheat production target was 20 million tonnes for the coming season and now it was finalising a policy to achieve the set target, officials involved in policy making revealed.

A meeting was held at the CM’s secretariat with Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif in the chair. Punjab Agriculture Minister Ahmed Ali Aulakh and 34 elected members of Punjab assembly who are members of the agriculture task force attended the meeting. Agriculture Secretary Malik Javeed Awan, Agriculture Extension Director General Dr Anjum Ahmed, Irrigation Secretary Baber Hassan, Punjab Seed Corporation director general and officials concerned were present there.

The officials said the expected price of DAP fertiliser for this Rabi season will be over Rs 3,000 per bag after the federal government announced Rs 1,000 per bag subsidy. Thus the cost of production will sharply increase as DAP played a vital role in wheat productivity. To bale out farmers and help them make up for their expenditures on fertiliser and other agriculture inputs, the Punjab government forwarded a proposal to the federal government to fix wheat price at Rs 1,000 per maund.

To increase wheat production, the Punjab government has also planned to increase area for wheat cultivation. The Punjab Agriculture Department will assign 10 per cent extra area for wheat crop once the federal government sets wheat growing target for provinces in a meeting of the Federal Committee of Agriculture.

The officials said that once the FCA assigned wheat growing targets for Punjab, the provincial Agriculture Department will assign targets to districts accordingly.

The Punjab government is also considering sowing wheat crop on all vacant cultivable lands of government departments, colleges or universities to increase wheat production. The Punjab government has also planned to organise wheat yield competition among framers and give small and big tractors, agriculture machinery as prizes to highest wheat producers.

For availability of certified seed which is the basic component to achieve ambitious wheat production targets, the Punjab government has tasked the Punjab Seed Corporation with ensuring the availability of certified wheat seeds with the cooperation of private seed companies. The Punjab government has also decided to provide seed grading facilities and planned to operate seed grading plants on public-private partnership pattern. The government plans to start the project as soon as possible as the sowing season in Barani areas started from October 15. The Agriculture Department will also take steps to save wheat crop from weeds.

After shortage of urea in Kharif season, the Punjab government has planned to establish strategic reserves before the start of the season. Currently the position of availability of DAP fertiliser is comfortable, the officials said and added that the Agriculture Department will monitor fertiliser supply network.

The Irrigation Department has taken steps to ensure availability of water for wheat crop despite 20 per cent water shortage.


http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=135162