SWABI: The local farmers have demanded of the government to assist them financially as the recent rains in the district have inflicted huge losses on them.

Addressing a meeting here on Monday, they said that growers were faced with great hardships due to the losses caused to them by the rains. They feared increase in the price of flour. “During my 80-year life I have never noticed such pleasant weather at that time of the year,” said Saman Khan, an elderly farmer of Maneri Bala area. He said that weather usually remained hot in that month and growers completed harvesting of wheat crop, followed by tobacco.

The leaders of Anjuman-i-Kasthkaran (AK), Kisan Board (KB) and Kashtkar Coordination Council (KCC) said the rains delayed harvesting and threshing of wheat crop besides affecting tobacco. KB district president Khalid Khan said that about 50 per cent wheat crop in the district was damaged. He feared increase in the price of flour. “The government will face shortage of wheat flour in the coming months if it fails to take timely measures,” he said.

Liaquat Yousufzai, the general secretary of KCC, said that the rain affected tobacco crop badly in the district. The poor farmers, he said, did not know how they could tackle the confronting problems. “There is no doubt that the rains have inflicted great financial loss on farmers,” he said.

Rain-hit growers seek financial assistance

Alam Sher Gohati, district president of AK, demanded of the government to provide financial assistance to the farmers, who did not have other source of livelihood.

RIFT: Differences cropped up between the local leaders of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) and Awami Jamhoori Ittehad Pakistan (AJIP), two coalition partners in the provincial government, over some issues, sources said.

The PTI leaders alleged that AJIP appointed its man as chairman of the district Zakat committee despite their strong reservations. However, they said that they wanted to work together with their coalition partner during the upcoming local government elections.

“We both should be on the same page,” said one of the PTI leaders.

Sources said that transfer of employees was also a bone of contention between the local leaders of both the parties. The PTI leaders said that they were not taken into confidence about it.

They said AJIP wanted to increase its influence at the cost of PTI. “We oppose this approach. If we remain silence, it will certainly weaken our position in the district,” said a district leader of PTI.

However, a leader of AJIP, when contacted, rejected the allegations and said that they were wanted to improve governance.

All the issues were treated on merit and according to the policies of the coalition partners, he claimed.

Published in Dawn, May 20th, 2014