October 29, 2006	Sunday	Shawwal 5, 1427

LAHORE, Oct 28: Punjab Food Minister Chaudhry Muhammad Iqbal on Saturday said that the government was planning to export 500,000 tons of wheat after maintaining a strategic buffer stock of an equal quantity before the arrival of the new crop in April next.

“We are hopeful that Punjab will have a carryover stock of one million tons of wheat this time, of this half may be exported,” he said while talking to media at national food conference held at a local hotel.Mr. Iqbal while welcoming the federal government's decision to cut down the price of the DAP fertilizer by Rs250 per bag, hoped that the price reduction would encourage farmers to bring more area under wheat crop.

He said that farmers should benefit from the incentives given by the government and should produce exportable wheat surplus of wheat in the country.

Earlier, addressing the conference, the minister said that the present government was endeavouring to promote agriculture sector which contributed about 25 per cent of the GDP.

Speaking on the occasion, Chairman PCSIR Dr. Javed Arshad Mirza said that the council was working to promote post-harvest technologies to help avert food and vegetable production losses.

He said that the PCSIR had also introduced value-addition techniques in the food sector by carrying out dehydration of food and vegetables.

Dr Javed suggested promoting research and development activities of the universities of agriculture in the country.—APP