Kissan Ittehad urges govt to treat agriculture as national priority
MULTAN: Pakistan Kissan Ittehad President Khalid Mahmood Khokhar on Sunday urged the government to immediately impose an agricultural emergency, warning that the country’s food security is at serious risk due to policy neglect and rising production costs. Speaking at a press conference at local press club, Khokhar said agriculture had never been treated as a national priority despite Pakistan being blessed with abundant natural resources. “If agriculture is ignored, the country’s economic stability and food security will remain under threat,” he said.
He pointed out that the country was importing commodities like soybean and could not expand exports due to weak shipping and trade infrastructure. “The country should focus on surplus production and increase agricultural exports,” he added.
Khokhar criticized policymakers for failing to address farmers’ concerns, saying that crop prices often fall below production costs. He said the cost of producing wheat was around Rs3,400 per unit but farmers were paid nearly Rs1,800 during last year.
He said wheat cultivation had declined by about 10 percent this year and farmers were suffering losses due to high fuel prices and expensive farm inputs.
Khokhar stressed that agriculture was the backbone of the national economy and even kept the country running during sanctions imposed after the nuclear tests.
He said farmers were the most patriotic segment of society as they ensured food supply for the nation but were often ignored in policymaking.
The Pakistan Kissan Ittehad leader called for subsidies across the agricultural sector, uninterrupted fertilizer supply and a guaranteed profit margin of at least 25 percent on crops.
He also urged the government to introduce future marketing systems and set support prices for crops well before the sowing season, citing neighbouring country where support prices were announced for 32 crops.
He warned that climate change and policy instability could worsen the situation if urgent reforms were not introduced. The Kissan leader also criticized frequent changes in the federal agriculture secretary, observing that the position had been changed 13 times in the last three years.
He further called for development of irrigation projects, including canals in Cholistan and cultivation of uncultivated land in Sindh, to enhance agricultural production.
“Without agricultural self-sufficiency, Pakistan’s future remains uncertain,” he said, urging the government to stop politicizing farming and provide immediate relief to growers. APP
