PUNJAB Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz on Monday launched the largest-ever Kissan Card programme aimed at enabling farmers to continue crop production without financial strains. It is for the first time in that Chief Minister Kissan Cards are being distributed in the province envisaging provision of interest-free loans to 750,000 farmers after their registration through the Provincial Agriculture Department.
This is indeed a milestone in the history of the province, which is contributing 70% of the country’s total agricultural output. One can understand the importance of the agriculture sector in Punjab by the fact that the province is responsible for 60% of Pakistan’s agricultural exports, provides raw material for major industries like textile, leather and food processing and employs about 48% of the population of the province. The Chief Minister deserves credit for devising a comprehensive project that takes care of most of the woes of the agriculture sector in the province. It is being launched at a time when concerns were being expressed by some circles that the discontinuation of the practice of announcing procurement prices for major crops as per understanding with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) could seriously affect agriculture productivity. The procurement prices are announced ahead of sowing season to encourage farmers to grow more and hopefully the underlying objective would be realized by bringing down the cost of inputs significantly through introduction of the Kissan Card. The CM has pledged to provide free laser levellers to farmers cultivating wheat on 12.5 to 25 acres of land and free tractors to farmers cultivating over 25 acres. The government will offer agricultural machinery on a no-profit rental basis to farmers. Successful implementation of the initiative has the potential not only to increase agriculture productivity but also stabilize prices.
