Kissan Card Scheme to be extended

So far, 700,000 cards have been distributed in Punjab

ISLAMABAD:

The Agriculture Transformation Plan will ensure a prosperous future for the farmers, remarked Federal Minister for National Food Security and Research Syed Fakhar Imam.

Chairing the 16th meeting of the National Coordination Committee of Agriculture Transformation Plan on Wednesday, Imam stressed the need for ensuring extensive outreach of the Kissan Card Scheme. He was briefed that approximately 700,000 Kissan Cards had been distributed in Punjab. The minister said that the agriculture credit facility was equally important for facilitating the farmers, adding that the facility should be provided on a priority basis.

He called for accelerating the finalisation of a mechanism for the distribution of subsidised agricultural implements to the farmers. “Seed quality is one of the primary factors that determines the productivity of a crop,” he added and underlined the need for improving the productivity of crops and the provision of high-quality seeds.

He was briefed that the upgraded seed processing plants for the Punjab Seed Department would be in place by 2023. The minister pointed out that the developed world was working on introducing hybrid seeds of wheat, which would increase the productivity by 30-40%. “The world is moving towards organic farming and Pakistan should be well equipped to catch up with it through the successful implementation of the Agriculture Transformation Plan.”

He highlighted that collaboration with the Chinese Academy of Agriculture Sciences could be a game changer for Pakistan.

“We need to exchange expertise in mechanisation, development of new varieties of seeds and germplasm,” he added. “China leads the world in agricultural mechanisation and Pakistan can support its agriculture sector by learning from Beijing’s knowledge and experience.” The current government had placed special emphasis on the improvement of agriculture sector, which generated almost 19% of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP), he said.

“The sector has the potential to become the backbone of the country through value addition.” The meeting was convened by Sustainable Development Policy Institute Executive Director Dr Abid Qaiyum Suleri and was attended by the chief secretaries of Punjab and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Pakistan Agricultural Research Council (PARC) chairman.

Agriculture secretaries of Punjab, Sindh, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan and senior officials of the Ministry of National Food Security and Research were also present.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 20^th, 2022.

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