Agriculture sector: Criticism of farmers’ relief package deplorable, says minister

LAHORE:

Criticism of the prime minister’s relief package for farmers is a political gimmick and will cause a serious loss to farmers, Agriculture Minister Dr Farrukh Javed said on Sunday.

He was talking to representatives of several farmers’ unions.

“The imposition of a ban on important parts of the package will aggravate the problems faced by growers. The government is working for development of the sector. Prosperity of farmers is an important prerequisite for a better economy,” he said.

Javed said that the solution to farmers’ problems lay in immediate implementation of the package. “Hurdles in agricultural reforms will cause direct loss to the masses,” he said.

He said that the government had formulated a plan to implement the package. “District administrations will start collecting data soon,” he said. The farmers’ representatives discussed various aspects of the relief package.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 5^th, 2015.