Monday, April 7, 2008, Rabi Ul Awal 29,1429    

Arbab contacts for release of tobacco share

Peshawar—NWFP Minister for Agriculture and Livestock, Arbab Muhammad Ayub Jan Saturday said that Federal Government will be contacted to release the due share of the NWFP in the tobacco as huge amount was being collected from growers as a central excise duty. This he said in a briefing given by the Secretary Agriculture, Abdul Samad Khan at his office. Arbab Ayub Jan regretted that being an agriculture country, we could not become self-sufficient even in the wheat and milk.

He stressed the officials of the department to make their research more effective to achieve the desired goal. He said that 48% necessity of the fruit is being fulfilled by the NWFP and it is a high time that the Agriculture Department should give due attention to the agricultural sector so that the fruit could be exported to the Middle East and other Asian countries. He also directed Secretary Agriculture to ask the Industry Department as why the sugar mills have started crushing season a month late which badly suffered the farmers, sugar crops on one hand and also caused a delay in the wheat crop.

Arbab Ayub Jan asked the concerned authorities to prepare a summary to restart the cooperative schemes for the poor growers. He also said that agriculture is the backbone of the Pakistan economy and the present government was determined to eliminate unemployment and poverty through agriculture sector and for the purpose more incentives were needed to be provided to the farmers. He took serious notice of non payment to the sugarcane growers by the sugar industries and asked Secretary Agriculture to contact the Industries Department so as to take appropriate action against the mills owners.

He said that a meeting would be held with the federal government to reduce the rate of fertilizers so the input and output could be balanced. He said that the government should wave off the credit of the small growers and provide them diesel and electricity on subsidized rate.—APP