CHITRAL, July 19: The farmers in Chitral have expressed concern over the inordinate delay in provision of bank loans for buying standardised seed and pesticides and sought the government’s help in this regard.

Talking to this correspondent here on Tuesday, the farmers of Lotkoh, Karimabad, Mastuj and Mulkhow valleys said that the potato crop would be greatly affected if the banks did not provide credit to them during the sowing season.

Khosh Dula Khan from Lotkoh valley said that the potato crop provided employment to thousands of people across the valleys, including Garam Chashma and Karimabad, and they would be rendered jobless if the potato crop got a setback due to use of substandard seed. He said that this year the farmers might not be able to buy standardised seed from the market.

Afsar Jan, a former councilor from Mastuj valley of upper Chitral, said that the local farmers produced wheat to meet the local need. He said that the farmers had been securing loans from the banks to buy DAP and urea fertilizers, which increased productivity, but this year the banks had been delaying the loan facility on one or the other pretext.

He said that over the years, many farmers have started growing vegetables on commercial scale, which needed a good preliminary investment for buying improved seeds, pesticides etc.