June 03, 2016
President Pakistan Businessmen and Intellectuals Forum (PBIF), President AKIA, Senior Vice Chairman of the Businessmen Panel of FPCCI and former provincial minister Mian Zahid Hussain on Friday said government should take notice of the plight of wheat growers.
Discouraging growers of wheat will result in reduced production of the staple which is against the interests of farming community, he said.
Mian Zahid Hussain said that planters across Pakistan are facing difficulties in getting gunny bags to sell their produce while their problems will increase during the holy month of Ramzan.
He said that the performance of agriculture sector nosedived due to apathy of the authorities as the growers have to wait for gunny bags for days while they cannot sell wheat without pleasing some of the officials.
The situation has emerged in favour of the middlemen who have started buying wheat at reduced rates which is exploitation.
Farmers of different crops have braved losses to the tune of Rs250 billion in the current fiscal while meaningful steps haven’t been taken yet, he observed.
He asked the government to bring more crops in the support price net and establish an independent Growers Commission for their welfare.
Recommendations of growers should be included in the budget making process to save the critical sector from negative growth, he demanded.
