MULTAN City News

‘Wheat crop likely to exceed target’
From Our Correspondent
MULTAN: Twenty-seven million ton wheat crop is expected against the target of 26 million ton in the country, said the agriculture officers.
They said that the federal government had fixed the wheat production target at 26 million ton, including 19.5 million ton for Punjab. They said that the government was negotiating with different countries to export the surplus wheat. The Punjab government had a signed contract with Tajikistan to export 5,000 ton wheat, they added.
They said that the Food Department was ready to procure whole wheat to provide relief to the farmers. They said that storage capacity of godowns was 3 million ton while last year’s 1.6 million ton wheat was still in the godowns.
On the other hand, the growers apprehended exploitation at the hands of the middlemen due to the last year’s unsold wheat stock. They urged the Punjab government to ensure wheat procurement at Rs 1,300 per maund. They demanded the government ensure wheat procurement through the Passco.
Meanwhile, talking to The News, National Assembly former speaker Syed Fakhar Imam urged the government to export the last year’s 2-3 million ton wheat stock to save the growers from financial crisis. He demanded the government set up the procurement centres near the harvesting areas to avoid the role of the middlemen