ISLAMABAD, June 2: Farmers and civil society activists have sought abolition of Gur Control Order 1948 and asked the government not to levy taxes on Gur and other related products in the next budget.

They said farmers were already under extreme pressure due to the unchecked increase in prices of various agricultural inputs, which in most cases were not sufficient even to meet their production cost.

They were speaking at a seminar: Defence of Gur Makers of Pakistan, organized by the coalition members at Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI) here on Friday. The coalition comprised The Network, SDPI, ActionAid, Sungi, SAAG, EJAD, SAP-PK, Pakistan Kisan Itehad, Ghreeb Kisan Itehad, Lok Sanjh, Punjab Lok Sujag, Daaman, etc.

The representatives of the coalition for the defence of Gur makers of Pakistan demanded of the government to do away with Gur Control Order 1948 and announcement of incentives for the small farmers of this crop in order to safeguard their livelihood and to weaken the monopoly of powerful sugar industry.

Coordinator Pakistan Kissan (PKI), NWFP Zone, and President Anjuman-e-Kashtakarran, NWFP Jan Nisar Khan Khalil, criticized the government for its double standards as on the one hand the government was signing WTO agreements while on the other it was banning the transportation of commodities and agricultural products even to the neighbouring countries which was affecting the small farmers of the country who had no other means of income generation to survive in such situation.

He urged a collective reaction to government’s plans to impose tax on gur making and Gur Control Order 1948.

He also shared with the participants some useful use of Gur.

Chaudhry Rashid of The Network—an NGO—said that gur making should be declared a tax-free domestic industry to safeguard the interests of more than 900,000 small farmers associated with this crop.

Giving a history of the events that led to decreased consumption of gur and increased dependency on sugar and sugar products in the country, he said that it was the powerful sugar industry, which always considered gur makers a rival community to their existence.

He was of the view that it was testing time for the government either to abolish colonial time’s Gur Control Order 1948 and announce incentives for the small farmers or to bow pressure of powerful lobby of sugar industry.

Niaz Kathia of the Village Friends Organization (VFO), Islamabad, lamented over government’s traditional negative role for not protecting the genuine interests of small farmers of the country.

He highlighted that the government never provided any friendly loans, water, technical assistance and support for agri marketing to the small farmers. He said the government’s tall claims had no real meaning for the small farmers because the government never tried to translate its words into actions.

Dr Shahid Zia of SAAG also criticized the government for their proposed move to levy taxes on the labour intensive sector which gives employment to thousands of people in the rural areas.

He asked the government to refrain from any taxation measure which according to him would invite country-wide protest and demonstration from the poor farmers.