HYDERABAD, Sept 30: The federal minister for food and agriculture, Khair Mohammad Junejo, has said that the federal government had granted approval to carry out a study about the release of water downstream Kotri.

He was addressing the members of the Sindh Chamber of Agriculture at the Agricultural Complex on Sunday.

He supported the demand of the growers that subsidy be provided.

About the prices of crops, the federal minister for food and agriculture, expressed the hope that the growers would get good price for onion and chillies in the international market.

He said the government had decided to offer support prices only for cotton and wheat crops, and added that the Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) had been issued instructions to purchase cotton from Sindh.

He said the support price for cotton stood at Rs800 per maund and hoped that this price could be increased to Rs900 per maund.

He said the government would not announce any support price for sugarcane because its production had exceeded the demand.

He said that it did not appear possible to abolish the GST. However, he hinted at the possibility in the reduction in the mark-up of ADBP loans.

He said that the fertilizer companies wanted to export or increase the prices of their manufactures but the government had not given any such permission.

The minister pointed out that the establishment of the Sindh Irrigation and Drainage Authority (SIDA) may not be beneficial but the World Bank considered it useful.

Mr Junejo said that the ADBP was being converted into a corporate body.

He assured that there would be no increase in the mark-up but the process would help in eliminating corruption.

He said the growers would also be nominated on the board of directors of the bank.

He told the growers that the commercial banks had been given instructions to grant loans to the growers on pass books, and added that the ADBP had also been issued instructions to issue revolving cards to the growers for three years.

He said that under the revolving cards the growers would be able to get seasonal loans.