DERA GHAZI KHAN, April 27: The food department is finding it difficult to meet its wheat procurement target as farmers are selling their crop to private buyers. As against a target of 430,000 tons, the department has so far been able to procure only 13,269 tons of wheat from Dera Ghazi Khan, 18,000 tons from Layyah, 37,000 tons from Rajanpur and 34,000 tons from Muzaffargarh. The procurement drive is to end on May 20.

This year, per acre yield of wheat crop has been lowered by an unexpected rise in temperature and closure of canals and unavailability of irrigation water at a critical stage. The crop matured early. Per acre yield in Taunsa Sharif is 23.9 maunds per acre this year, as against 33 maunds last year. In Dera Ghazi Khan, per acre yield was 34.17 maunds last year, but it came down to 26 maunds this year.

Farmers are selling their crop to private buyers at Rs390 to 400 per maund, while the government is offering Rs367 only. Dealers and millers of other provinces are purchasing the crop directly from farmers despite the ban on inter-district movement of the crop.

The food department has established seven procurement centres each in Dera Ghazi Khan and Rajanpur, 12 in Muzaffargarh and seven in Layyah as well as three checkposts to halt movement of the crop to other provinces: Shah Wali post at the border with Sindh, Tareman post at the border with the NWFP and Baiwata post at the border with Baluchistan.

Experts say that early maturation of wheat will also affect the yield next year, as the government provides only 17 per cent seed for sowing. Therefore, 83 per cent seed for the next crop will come from this crop, which is not healthy as it matured early.