Tobacco growers complain of exploitation

SWABI: Representatives of the growers on Thursday accused the tobacco companies of using exploitative methods and requested the government to play a role in helping them recover dues to the farmers.

An emergency meeting of the district officials of Kisan Board Swabi was held at Jagannath and the participants discussed the tobacco growers' problems and proposed possible solutions. The meeting was addressed by Rizwanullah Khan, president of Kisan Board, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and general secretary Abdul Samad Safi, Mahmoodul Hassan, patron-in-chief and district president Khalid Khan. The participants said the tobacco companies owed a large amount of money to the farmers over the last year. They mentioned names of the companies which had allegedly adopted delaying tactics in payments.

"These companies have been exploiting the farmers for the last one year which is tantamount to plundering the labour of the farmers," he said. The speakers added they had had several meetings with Mardan deputy commissioner, commissioner, secretary for Agriculture, chairman, Tobacco Board and owners of the companies to resolve the issue but to no avail.

Abdul Samad Safi said the Tobacco Board and the central and provincial governments were showing helplessness and weakness in dealing with these exploitative companies. Through a unanimously adopted resolution, the participants demanded the government to play its role in the recovery of their dues from the companies within a week so that the farmers could easily resolve their confronting financial problems.