DERA GHAZI KHAN: Chief Minister Usman Buzdar on Thursday inaugurated the wheat harvesting campaign at Matwa village of Rajanpur’s Rojhan tehsil.

The chief minister said the wheat procurement target this year had been fixed at 4.5 million metric ton and the wheat would be procured at Rs1,400 per maund.The provincial ministers will monitor the procurement campaign in the assigned districts.

He said 15 interprovincial entry and exits points wouldalso be fully monitored during this campaign.

The chief minister reiterated that the interests of farmers would be protected and every wheat grain would be procured.

Projects worth Rs300 billion werelaunched in Punjab under the PM Agriculture Emergency Programme, he said, adding that Rs12.5 billion project had also been started to increase per acre wheat yield.

The government, he said, had provided 400,000 sacks of certified seeds to the farmers this year and 1.2 million sacks would be given to farmers for the next crop. In the meantime, he said crops of 250,000 farmers had been insured by increasing the scope of the scheme.

The chief minister said Rs8.5 billion subsidy was also given to farmers to purchase fertilizers and 10,000 watercourses were being brick-lined in Punjab at a cost of Rs28 billion.

Among other initiatives, he said, the Punjab government had introduced 80 new varieties of vegetables, fruits and other commodities besides starting complaint management system for eradicating fake pesticides and fertilizers. Similarly, interest-free loans worth Rs15 billion had also been given to farmers under the e-credit scheme, he said.

Officials told Mr Buzdar that the wheat procurement target of more than 650,000 metric ton had been fixed for DG Khan division. They said 29,800 metric ton wheat was being daily provided to meet the food needs while almost 1.2 million flour bags were being provided to markets in Punjab.

The CM visited the wheat procurement centre at the Matwa village and distributed gunny bags among the farmers.

Later, the chief minister visited the Rajanpur DHQ hospital to review the facilities arranged for the coronavirus patients.He directed the officials to ensure better treatment of patients and promised that the shortage of doctors and paramedics would be overcome soon and consultant doctors wouldalso be appointed in this hospital.

He said the health facility would be upgraded and the rural health centres of Fazalpur, Kot Mithan and Dajal would alsobe upgraded as THQ hospitals.

He announced that an eye ward would be set up in Rojhan Hospital and gynaecology wards would be established in Jampur and Rojhan hospitals.

Published in Dawn, April 10th, 2020