ISLAMABAD, Feb 15: The country, despite severe shortage of irrigation water and drought conditions in rain-fed areas, is likely to achieve wheat production target of 20 million tonnes.

“The crop condition in southern and central Punjab and wheat growing areas of other provinces is so far quite satisfactory,” Federal Food and Agriculture Minister Khair Mohammad Junejo told Dawn.

Junejo, who visited different parts of the country during the last one week, said the wheat crop had not yet been affected by some 60 per cent shortage of irrigation water in the canal irrigated areas and lack of rain in arid region of northern Punjab.

Last year, the country had achieved 19.4 million tonnes of wheat though the irrigation water had been short by 40 per cent.

However, growers in the arid region of Punjab depicted a very dismal picture of crop situation. The people in these areas, where the economy is almost 100 per cent dependent on rains, have been facing serious economic hardships because of very little or no rains in the last two winters, Mohammad Riaz, a grower from Chakwal district said.

The minister also agreed that the wheat crop might suffer if the country did not receive rains in the current month. “We are expecting rains by the end of this month and one or two showers will have positive effect on the crop,” he added.

Riaz said it was not only the wheat crop which had been suffering because of the lack of rains but also all the agriculture-related activity, including live stock in the region, which contributes about 20 per cent in the total wheat production of the country, has been affected.

“In winter, if we receive three to four showers, we can match per acre yield of canal irrigated areas,” he added.

He lamented that last year they could not even get hay from the crop due to drought which caused formidable difficulties in sustaining the live stocks.

Riaz regretted that there was no cognizance of their plight by the government and the urban population which could not survive without agricultural produce.

Riaz said the prices of fodder for cattle and other live stock had also gone up sharply owing to drought. The watertable in the region has also gone down by the expansion of urban centres and misuse of water, he added.

“In urban centres people are celebrating Valentine Day and Basant, while the people in rural areas are suffering,” he added.