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LAHORE: Farmers Association Pakistan (FAP) Chairman and former Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said on Saturday that Pakistan and India should seriously solve the most sensitive issue of water through dialogues.
Speaking to the media after a foundation day ceremony of FAP, he said that water was the basic necessity for agriculture, adding that shortage of water could cause problems not only to the two neighbours but also among provinces.
Qureshi said that land of Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was very fertile but thousands of hectares of land could not be irrigated due to shortage of water.
The former minister stressed construction of new dams and said that hundreds of small dams could be built in the country which would help boost agriculture.
He said the Kalabagh Dam should not be ruled out and it should be constructed after a consensus of all political parties.
To a question, Qureshi said that the Indus Water Treaty should be implemented in letter and spirit.
He said that agriculture tax should be enforced, however, the mechanism of tax collection could be discussed.
He said that small farmers should be exempted but landowners or big farmers should contribute to the revenue of the country, adding that as a member parliament he could persuade farmers on it.
Answering a question about his ministership, he said that leaders decided about it and he accepted the decision, adding that leaders of the party knew who should do what.
Hussain Jahania Gardezi, voice chairman FAP, Malik Afaq Tiwana, chief executive FAP, Dr M Tariq Bucha, director central council FAP, and farmers from all over the country participated in the ceremony. – APP
