LAHORE: Wheat farmers have demanded the Punjab government increase minimum support price and double the wheat procurement target from two million tonnes to four million tonnes. They warned of protests if their demands were not fulfilled.

Speaking at a press conference here on Monday, Pakistan Kisan Ittehad President Khalid Khokhar said the farmers were concerned at the reports that the provincial government had reduced wheat procurement target from the previous years’ four metric tonnes to two million tonnes this year on the excuse that it had enough carry-over stock.

Blaming the last caretaker set-up for importing 3.2 million tonne wheat at the cost of precious foreign exchange only for vested interest, ignoring the pleas of farmers, Khokhar urged Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz to fix the procurement target at four million tonnes like the previous years for controlling the falling grain prices that had come down to Rs3,200 per 40kg against the official minimum support price of Rs3,900.

The PKI leader urged the CM to approach the federal government for making fertiliser, electricity and diesel affordable for the growers of Punjab, which was guaranteeing food security for the whole country. He regretted that various countries were effectively making 20-year plans for their agriculture sector while Pakistani authorities could not ensure provision of compost even for one month.

Warn of protests, sit-in outside Punjab Assembly; say even official price is not being implemented

Lauding the steps taken for the agriculture sector by the incumbent set-up, Mr Khokhar demanded the government take the farmers on board.

In a separate press conference, farmer leaders, Khalid Batth and Mian Umair Masood, regretted that for the first time in the history of the country neither public nor private sector was ready to pick wheat from the growers while the mafia was purchasing grain from the poor farmers at a rate from Rs2,200 to Rs2,800 per 40kg.

Wearing shrouds, they said the Arhtis from whom farmers would get loans for seed and fertiliser were blackmailing the borrowers/farmers who were ready to sell wheat at a rate equal to their production cost.

They demanded the government ensure procurement of grain at its officially announced rate of Rs3,900 per 40kg; otherwise, they threatened that farmers would launch a sit-in outside the Punjab Assembly from April 29 and end the protest only when the official rate would be guaranteed.

The farmer leaders said the farming community was being forced to sell wheat at lower rates while the urban consumers were being provided wheat flour at higher rates. They blamed the bureaucrats for creating a situation in which neither the rural nor urban population was benefiting from a bumper wheat crop.

Published in Dawn, April 16th, 2024