June 13, 2006	Tuesday	Jumadi-ul-Awwal 16, 1427

ISLAMABAD, June 12: The standing committee of the National Assembly on food here on Monday expressed its concerns over the inability of the Zari Taraqqiati Bank Ltd (ZTBL) to implement the package announced by President Gen Pervez Musharraf to exempt farmers from paying interests on Rs500,000 and below loans.

Presided by ruling party MNA Makhdum Shah Mahmud Hussain Qureshi the standing committee observed that it was an irony that billions of rupees were written off to elite industrialists every year while poor farmers were being thrown into jails if they defaulted on small loan of Rs12,000. The mark-up on farm credits was three to four times higher than the principal amount.

The committee observed that the ZTBL must obey the directives of the president by implementing the package in its letter and spirit by allowing farmers to pay only the principal amount.

It recommended to the Ministry of Finance to cap the prices of diesel at the current level after the ministry said it was unable to give 50pc subsidy on diesel fuel requested by the standing committee and the Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Livestock (Minfal).

The committee said that the Water and Power Development Authority (Wapda) should be directed to pass on the benefits of Rs59bn subsidy to farmers by subsidising electricity for farm tube-wells on equitable basis in all the provinces and regions of the country.

Federal Minister for Food, Agriculture and Livestock Sikandar Hayat Bosan and Minfal Secretary Mohammad Ismail Qureshi briefed the committee on various measures being taken to implement the pre-budget recommendations of the standing committee. They informed the committee that Minfal was able to implement six of the total 10 recommendations. One of the recommendations was partly implemented.

Mr Qureshi said that it was the responsibility of the provincial governments to implement the rules which stopped housing societies from buying agricultural land.

Federal minister for Industries and Production Jahangir Tareen and chairman standing committee of the senate on agriculture Amjid Abbas Qureshi also attended the meeting.

The committee said it was a good sign that the government had awarded Rs700m to the Pakistan Agricultural Research Council (PARC) in the budget and Rs2.5bn for the National Agriculture Research Fund for three years. The committee observed that both the allocations should be spent primarily on research activities instead of the salaries and other expenditures of the staff.