HYDERABAD, Nov 20: The Sindh Abadgar Board has proposed to the federal minister for agriculture, food and livestock to advise provincial governments to appoint monitoring committees at the district level to check black-marketing of DAP and phosphate fertilisers by dealers.

In a communication addressed to the federal minister, the president of the board, Mr Majeed Nizamani, said that the federal government had reduced the prices of DAP and other phosphate fertilisers, but the dealers in Sindh had concealed their stock. As a result, he said that the average grower had been deprived of phosphate fertilisers as he could not get the same at official rates.

Mr Nizamani said that only those farmers could get the fertilisers who were prepared to pay higher price.

He said that the present system had proved totally ineffective in controlling the black-marketing of DAP and other fertilisers.

The SAB president called upon the federal minister to advise the provincial governments to form monitoring committees at the district level to check the black-marketing of essential agricultural input.

He said that the committees should comprise of competent officers of the agriculture department and reputed growers and headed by the DCO of each district.

He said that these committees should also be empowered to take action where and when necessary.

He said that if the matter was delayed, the government subsidy to farmers would not reach at the grassroots level, adding that in such a case, the subsidy would benefit dealers instead of farmers.