‘Subsidies given to farmers to increase wheat growth’

LAHORE : Food security has become the first priority and wheat is our main food crop to meet this challenge, said Director General of Agriculture (Extension) Punjab, Dr Anjum Ali here Saturday.

Addressing the farmers' convention in the context of the campaign to grow more wheat with the cooperation of the Punjab Agriculture Department and a private fertiliser company, he said that under the national plan to increase wheat, subsidies are being provided to the farmers to increase the production of wheat per acre at a cost of 12 billion 59 million rupees. All resources are being used to achieve this. Last year, wheat was cultivated on an area of 7 lakh 31 thousand acres in Bahawalpur district, from which 10 lakh 52 thousand tons of production was obtained. This year also the farmers will cultivate wheat on maximum area under the national spirit. To increase the production of wheat per acre this year, the farmers should be given subsidy of Rs1,200 per bag of approved varieties of wheat and herbicides. Apart from this, the implementation of the programme of providing modern agricultural machinery worth billions of rupees to the farmers on 50 percent subsidy is also ongoing to promote the mechanized cultivation of wheat, he said.

On this occasion, Director Agriculture Extension Bahawalpur Jamshed Khalid Sindhu said that wheat, sugarcane and cotton crops are high in Bahawalpur division. He said that farmers should follow the advice of agricultural experts so that wheat production can increase. He said that in Bahawalpur average yield of wheat per acre in the division is 36 maunds per acre, which needs time to increase to meet the country's food requirements. He said that the farmers should apply fertilisers and irrigation timely to the wheat crop planted in early November, as any delay at this stage could affect the production.

The Department of Agriculture Extension staff is present in the field alongside the farmers for the awareness and technical guidance of the farmers regarding modern production technology of wheat. In addition, print, electronic and other media are also being used so that per to ensure the achievement of the target of increase in acre production. Farmers can take full advantage of the ongoing farmer-friendly projects of the Punjab government and ensure the achievement of the wheat production target of Punjab province and ensure food security by cultivating wheat on maximum area.

On this occasion, Dr Lal Hussain Akhtar for introducing the modern production technology of wheat, while Dr Saeed Iqbal, an agricultural expert of a private company, recommended to the farmers in the wheat crop that they should use balanced and timely phosphorus and nitrogen fertilisers in the wheat crop.