Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Mahmood Khan has said that the provincial government has taken pragmatic measures to ensure food security of the province and reduce agricultural dependency on other provinces of the country.
In a statement issued here on Monday, he stated that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was the first province which had launched its own food security policy that includes short, medium and long-term initiatives aimed at increasing the agricultural produce of the province.
The Chashma Right Bank Lift Canal (CRBC) project is also in the pipeline which, on completion, would bring hundreds of thousands of acres of barren land under cultivation in the southern districts.
Mahmood Khan said that the incumbent government launched Kisan Card, for the assistance of farmers, which was the first of its kind initiative providing relief to farmers in the form of subsidies on agricultural products.
According to details, the steps taken in agriculture and livestock sector in settled districts alone include the reclaiming of 4,185 acres of land for agricultural purposes, 39,095 meters of water course lining, training of 2,500 farmers on advanced technologies, establishment of 228 trout and carp fish farms, thereby increasing production by 0.3 million kg while 1.4 million fish seeds have also been provided to farmers.
Moreover, an agriculture and livestock program has been initiated while the establishment of first veterinary university, i.e.
The University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, is in progress. Similarly, development of the environment and forestry sector has also remained the priority of the provincial government since its inception. Owing to the sincere efforts of the government, forest cover in the province has increased substantially. Under the 10 billion tree tsunami project, plantation of one billion saplings is underway.
