STAFF REPORTER .
ISLAMABAD Secretary General (Federal) of the Businessmen Panel (BMP) of FPCCI, Ahmad Jawad on Monday said that the country is likely to face an economic crisis as the wheat crop in Punjab is affected due to unusual rains with certain disease. In a statement issued here, Jawad said, “Thedamages to the wheat crops would have devastating effects on the economy of the country.” He said that wheat and mustard crops in South Punjab and Potohar area of Punjab were severely damaged due to heavy rains. The SG (Federal) of BMP said that the government should conduct a complete survey of the affected areas on priority basis so that they should announce relief to the farming community. The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) should direct the banks to waive off the loan interest for wheat farmers in this emerging emergency, he added. Jawad further told that Pakistan’s agriculture sector will face another setback from the slowdown in exports of our textile sector. The local and international demand of cotton is set to weaken, which in turn will also have negative repercussions for changes in crop patterns as 12.82 million jobs are vulnerable in the agriculture sector alone due to the impending slowdown in economy, he added.
