BAHAWALPUR: After hailstorm and rainlast month caused extensive damage to the standing wheat crop on thousands of acres around the Channigoth Markaz in Ahmedpur East tehsil, affected farmers have demanded the governmentdeclare the area calamity-hit and introduce monetary incentives for them.

In the areas of Channigoth Markaz, wheat crop in more than 20 villages had been damaged due to hailstorm and rain, which hit the area around March 25.

Agriculture Officer Tariq Saeed of Ahmedpur East tehsil told Dawn that as per the initial survey, 16,000 acres of wheat crop had been damaged in Hasil Larr, Laloo Naich, Ahmed Naich, Muhammad Naich, Arianwala, Tahir Wali, Mullanwali, Bast Mochian and Mahand Sharif villages.

The standing crop on about 12,000 acres had been completely destroyed, while the loss was about 25 per cent on the remaining land where farmers were able to collect hardly four to eight maunds per acre.

Besides his own survey, Saeed said the field staff, including patwaris, also carried out a survey of the rural areas to prepare their own reports of the damage.

The cultivators around Channigoth Markaz have demanded the Punjab government compensate them as their crop had completely washed away due to the hailstorm. Ibrahim Larr and other affected landowners claimed that they were left with nothing even for their domestic needs for a year.

He demanded the area be declared calamity-hit and they be compensated with cash to meet daily needs of their families, the pending payments made to dealers from whom they had purchased agriculture outputs on credit and further purchase of fertilisers and cotton seeds, writing off of interest on agriculture loans from banks, exemption from the revenue andabiana(price of water) of the perished crop by revenue and irrigation departments.

So far, the agriculture department had not yet sought any survey report of the damaged wheat crop in Ahmedpur East tehsil despite protests by the affected farmers, while similar reports had been received from the greenbelt areas the adjacent Cholistan desert.

STUDENTS IN CHINA: Fifteen students belonging to Bahawalpur division and studying in various institutions in China have appealed to the government to make arrangements for their safe return to Pakistan.

The parents of these students belonging to Bahawalpur, Bahawalnagar and Chishtian as well as students organisations have expressed concern over the government’s alleged apathy towards the repatriation of Pakistani students.

According to the student organisations, the students in China were facing financial hardships, visa and passport issues as well as lack of enough food.

JOURNALISTS: The Bahawalpur Union of Journalists (BhUJ) organised a demonstration outside the press club to observe International Press Freedom Day on Sunday.

The demonstration was organised on the call of Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists and led by BhUJ Senior Vice President Akram Nasir.

CORONAVIRUS: There were currently 10 patients of Covid-19 at the government Civil Hospital here.

According to focal person for coronavirus, Dr Zakir Hussain, about 1,200 members of Tableeghi Jamaat have been discharged from the hospital.

Published in Dawn, May 4th, 2020