One of the major hurdles in the way of higher productivity of the farming sector has been the high cost of modern implements.

That has kept many a farmer tied to superannuated practices or forced them to stick to machinery that has been replaced by more modern and productive technology in most countries, including places that have the same soil, social and other conditions similar to those prevailing in Pakistan.

While almost the entire country has started using tractors, it has been a long haul because of the investment involved in purchasing tractors. Long years were spent to convert the sector to mechanized farming, as small farmers, indeed middle level growers too, could not afford to purchase tractors.

Banking facilities enabled relatively affluent farmers to use mechanized methods but interest added to the actual cost left them high and dry. The marginal improvement in produce did not reflect in any improvement in their lives. In any case, there was no leap of progress.

Unfortunately, the industrial base was oriented to high profit and did not play its due role in the development of Pakistan’s agriculture. Growth in the sector has consequently been extremely limited while pressures on the sector were mounting because of the rise in the population and high cost of food imports.

Admittedly, short sighted policies of the government or the officials succumbing to the pressures of certain lobbies also contributed to keeping the sector at a distance from meeting national needs, such as in the edible oils but lack of affordable equipment has undeniably been a major handicap of Pakistan’s agriculture.

New developments are however encouraging. A number of small entrepreneurs have stepped forward to produce the latest farm equipment at a cost that is within the means of many farmers, including those that own small pieces of land. Of course those with very small-holdings would still be left out.

Considering that they form the majority of members of the farming community, this limitation needs to be removed. Still, there seems to be good reason to believe that within the next few years, agriculture output should get a decent boost, something that is urgently and badly needed.

Resource conservation technologies have been adopted by many countries across the world in the past few years. Pakistan has also embarked on this path but the pace has been slow due to the expensive cost of machinery. However, some manufacturers have realized that the field is open and can be exploited with benefit for both producers and users and they have fabricated the equipment locally, bringing prices considerably down in the process. In some cases, the difference between imported and locally fabricated machinery is almost unbelievable.

There is the example of Zero Tillage Technology (ZTT). The technology was transferred to Pakistan in 1980 through CIMMYT, Mexico-based UN-backed organization for enhancing agriculture productivity that spearheaded the Green Revolution of the 60’s. The US AID and Massey University of New Zealand also helped Pakistan obtain this technology. At that time, the cost of a ZT drill was Rs3,60,000; the price has been brought down to Rs30,000 per drill by local manufacturers by now.

A three-year period—1981-84— was spent in local fabrication and another six years were invested in pilot testing of the locally fabricated implement. A demonstration phase—1996-99— ensured that farmers became familiar with it. Since the year 2000, the drill has been adopted at a wide scale.

ZTT is particularly suited for the wheat crop, allows early sowing by five days to two weeks, saves about 20 per cent irrigation water, reduces cost of cultivation by almost Rs 1000, increases plant population by at least 20 per cent which means a similar increase in produce although results of its use place produce increase at 33 per cent, scuttles diesel expenses by 25 per cent and most importantly, improves soil fertility. If the government had effectively backed its propagation and adoption, wheat produce in the country would have been higher by now. The federal ministry of food and agriculture extended a helping hand through its research organizations, the NARC and the PARC while CIMMYT and the Rice Wheat Consortium, an organization linked with CIMMYT also supported its propagation, the on-farm water management wing of Punjab’s agriculture department was the main body in the province to introduce the technology and induce farmers to benefit from it.

Unfortunately, the Punjab government did not give it priority support. Other provinces totally neglected it. Bed Planter (BP) price has also been brought down from Rs150,000 in 1996 to Rs30,000. It is an implement for use in both wheat and cotton crops, as also in a number of minor crops.

These two implements have been brought within the reach of most farmers but Laser Technology is still quite expensive although down from one million rupees in 1985 to Rs0.325 million. Only agriculturists with large land holdings can afford it. Actually, the small landowners may find even ZT and BP beyond their resources. The government must help these farmers.

The Punjab government has plans for making these implements available at Union Council level to enable a maximum of farmers to benefit from them; the intentions sound very good. But how well and how soon they are turned in to actions is the question. There is no time to be wasted.

One hopes that the authorities back their ideas with concrete implementation measures without wasting time. That is what the farming sector and in that the country needs: speedy mechanization of the farming sector and adoption of the latest technologies. This is essential for not only meeting increasing food needs of the nation but also surviving challenges posed by the WTO.