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Pakistan’s Federal Minister for Food, Agriculture, and Livestock (FAL), Mr. Nazar Mohammad Gondal, told the Federal Committee on Agriculture, Tuesday, about the government’s plan of starting a campaign for an increase in wheat production so as to meet the growing demand of the country’s leading food commodity. The campaign will aim at raising the average wheat production capacity of the country from the currently existing 27 maunds per acre to 30 maunds per acre in the coming season.
The existing rate of wheat production in Pakistan per season is 45 to 50 maunds in some areas of the country while around 15 maunds at most in other parts. If the campaign for increasing wheat production is successful, the country will be able to produce an additional 3 million tones of wheat per season. To achieve this objective, the government has taken a number of steps including greater loan facilities to farmers, better management of water for irrigation, and wide use of production technology in all provinces of the country. Using better wheat seeds for successful cultivation is also part of the government’s new plan.
Besides wheat, the new government’s plan for increased agricultural production will include measures for increasing the production of a number of food commodities including potato, onion, and other ‘Rabi’ crops. The motivation for increasing ‘Rabi’ crops, like wheat, mainly comes from the lag in agricultural production, especially during the previous ‘Kharif’ season crops with low production of f cotton and sugar. Now the government has set aside a sum of 20 billion rupees for developing the country’s agricultural sector.
