LAHORE, Nov 27: Wheat sowing in the Punjab has picked up pace during the last three weeks.

According to the latest figures available with the Agriculture Department 6.47 million acres have been sown so far this year, compared to 6.38 million acres during the corresponding period last year — an increase of 1.39 per cent. Department officials said this area represented 41.86 per cent of the 15.458 million acres target area.

Sowing had been slow in early November for several reasons, including scarcity of water, late harvesting of sugarcane and cotton crops and uncertainty about the support price of wheat. During the last three weeks, however, the area sown increased from nearly 4 per cent less than the corresponding period last year to about 1.39 per cent more in about three weeks.

A spokesman for the Agriculture Department attributed the improvement to land being freed for sowing as a result of harvest being completed in the cotton growing areas.

Availability of water, too, had a role. Besides the perennial canals, water was also available in the non-perennial areas from Nov 11 to Nov 25. Being a relatively pest free and robust crop, wheat is generally preferred by the farmers over the oil seed which is more vulnerable to price manipulation by industrialists.

The spokesman said sowing was expected to keep the momentum during the next two weeks as a result of clearing of sugarcane fields. —Staff Reporter