KARACHI: The Sindh government on Monday abolished the five bags per acre limit in wheat procurement and allowed small farmers to sell their wheat to government without any quantity restriction.

The decision was taken at a meeting held at the CM House to review the ongoing wheat procurement campaign with Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah in the chair.

Taking notice of the critical situation of the procurement target due to the restriction of five bags per acre imposed on small growers, the chief minister immediately allowed them to supply as much grain as they wished.

According to a press statement issued from the CM House, Mr Shah directed the food department to accelerate procurement, ensure immediate payments to farmers, and strengthen field-level outreach to meet the provincial target.

Says pace of procurement should be accelerated and payments to farmers be made promptly

The meeting was attended, among others, by Senior Minister Sharjeel Memon, Food Minister Makhdoom Mahboobuz Zaman, Chief Secretary Asif Hyder Shah and Agriculture Secretary Zaman Narejo.

The meeting was informed that the wheat procurement campaign that began on April 1 with a target of one million tonnes at a support price of Rs3,500 per 40kg was in full swing.

The campaign covers over 332,000 farmers cultivating wheat on approximately 1.94 million acres across the province.

The food minister said that approximately 8,958 tonnes of wheat had so far been procured against the overall target of 973,900 metric tonnes.

He said that the procurement target could not be achieved primarily due to the restriction of five bags per acre limit imposed on small growers.

Taking notice of the issue, CM Shah immediately abolished the limit to ensure maximum possible procurement from small farmers.

The meeting was told that payments to farmers had been significantly expedited, with funds now being transferred within one day through Sindh Bank. So far, Rs198.3 million has been disbursed among growers.

The chief minister expressed his satisfaction over the improved payment mechanism and said: “Timely payment is crucial for farmers’ trust. We must ensure that every grower is paid promptly and transparently”.

He directed the district administration, agriculture, and food departments to further intensify the procurement drive and ensure maximum participation of farmers. “All eligible farmers must be encouraged to bring their wheat to government procurement centres. This is essential not only for food security, but also for supporting our growers,” he said.

He said that farmers selling wheat to the government would remain eligible for future subsidies and support programmes.

The meeting was informed that assistant commissioners and mukhtiarkars were regularly visiting procurement centres, while agriculture officials were actively engaging farmers.

A control room has also been established for complaint redressal, and 12 additional wheat procurement centres have been opened to facilitate the drive.

The chief minister directed strict monitoring of procurement centres to ensure transparency and prevent malpractices.

“There should be ‘zero tolerance’ for irregularities. The entire process must remain farmer-friendly and efficient,” he said.

Mr Shah stressed close coordination among all departments to remove bottlenecks and improve operational efficiency.

He also directed that non-functional procurement centres be made operational immediately and that logistical arrangements be strengthened in the districts with low procurement.

Published in Dawn, April 21st, 2026