December 02, 2006	Saturday	Ziqa'ad 10, 1427

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LAHORE, Dec 1: Punjab lags behind in wheat sowing by, according to an official estimate, 20 per cent, though the farmers claim it was hardly 45 per cent of the target by the end of November — the most propitious time for sowing.

“Though the sowing should have ideally been completed by Nov 20, it can be stretched to the end of the month but certainly not beyond this date as any delay can cost up to 15 per cent of the yield,” according to the farmers.

According to Secretary Agriculture Fayyaz Bashir, around 80 per cent of sowing has been completed in the province. The sowing drive was in full swing and the rest of the process would be completed by mid-December as there was no water shortage, he said.

Talking about the delay, the secretary said delayed sowing had emerged as an overall pattern during the last few days. Cotton picking normally got delayed every year due to different factors and so was the rice crop. Both these crops covered massive acreage in the province and any delay in them automatically held back wheat sowing, he said.

Last year, sowing was 85 per cent by the end of November, and it was five per cent less this year. But this was not any major difference and would be made up in the next few days, he hoped.

Ibrahim Mughal of AgriForum thinks that delay is caused by the late start of cane crushing season and unavailability of DAP fertiliser. Lack of coordination between provincial and district governments has also been a factor, besides better price of cotton which delayed clearing of fields. But, the fear is that all these factors can cost six to seven per cent of the wheat yield, he said.

He insisted that sowing had not gone beyond 66 per cent of the target which was put at 20.90 million acres. Out of them, 44 per cent fields were yet to be sown, he added.

One should not lose the context either, he said and added: “Bangladesh had ordered import of wheat from Pakistan this year. Any reduction in yield might affect the export prospects and a potential foreign market. That is why the government should have been more sensitive to the yield deadline. In these circumstances, closure of non-perennial canals in the southern Punjab can also hurt wheat prospects.”

Hamid Malhi of the Farmers Associate Pakistan says though the government and farmers expect to meet the mid-November deadline of wheat sowing, weather is the factor dictating sowing time. Even this year, late rains have kept fields moist, thus making the rice harvesting next to impossible. Marketing mechanism also affects the sowing process. The government hardly takes these factors into account when planning for deadlines.

Since weather is the most crucial factor in sowing of wheat, it can hardly be planned ahead in any strict timeframe. For the last few years, the sowing process has hardly met the so-called deadline of mid- or end-November, he claims.