HARIPUR, Jan 6: Wheat has been sown on 36,981 hectares in Haripur, five per cent more than the last season, deputy director of agriculture Sadiq Hussain told Dawn here on Tuesday.

He said the annual wheat sowing target fixed by the authorities had been increased owing to the farmers' extraordinary interest and favourable weather conditions this season.

He expressed the hope that as the area received more rainfall, it was would result in increased output and better yield. He said local agriculture authorities procured 32 tons of wheat seed which was produced locally, while only 11 tons were brought from Dera Ismail Khan.

He recommended that for better results the farmers should sow Daman-98, Fakhr-i-Sarhad and Suleman-96 varieties available at the farm centres. Mr Sadiq said that to facilitate procurement of certified fertilizer, pesticides and tractors, three farm service centres had been set up in Haripur, Ghazi and Khanpur, where wheat seed was being sold at Rs 11 per kilogram, DAP at Rs 845 per 40 kilograms and urea at Rs 415 per bag. He said that 43 tons of wheat seed along with 1,000 bags of DAP and 600 bags of urea had been provided to these centres.