ISLAMABAD: After a long dry spell, current rains would have a positive impact on crops particularly on food security crop like wheat, which has been sown over 8.8 million hectare of land in the country.
Besides, the rain spell would also help to boost the production of pulses like grams,moong and vegetables, oil seeds cultivated over a vast land to fulfill the domestic requirements in the country.
Wheat Development Commissioner of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MinFA) Dr. Shakeel A Khan told APP on Monday that the rains are very fruitful for the major food crop, wheat in rain-fed areas.
He said that the current spell of rains would help enhance the crop out-put in rain-fed areas as the wheat sowing in irrigated areas registered negative growth due to devastating floods during the last year.
Meanwhile, the rains would leave a healthy impact on pulses like moong, grams and the vegetables as the most of these crops direly required water for irrigation at this stage, he added.
The Wheat Commissioner informed that this year wheat crop has been sown over 8.8 million hectares of land to fulfill the domestic consumption which was down by 3.5 per cent as compared to the last year sowing.
Wheat crop has been sown over 6.68 million hectares of land in Punjab, while in the Sindh Province about 1.08 million hectares are under wheat crop, he said.
In Khyber Pakhtunkhawa (KPK) the wheat crop has been sown over 0.73 million hectares and in Baluchistan it was cultivated over 0.32 million hectare.
Dr. Shakeel said that the current wheat crop outlook was quite satisfactory in the country adding that it is also expected that output of the crop would also remain positive.
He advised the farmers to regularly monitor their crops and use proper pesticides and uproot weeds to enhance per acre out-put to make the country self-relaint in food production.
It may be recalled that according to Met Office Islamabad, more rains with isolated heavy snowfall over the hilly areas, are expected in most parts of the country.
The scattered rains with snowfall which also occurred in Azad Kashmir, Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan washed away the dust and brought hope for farmers.
The much-awaited rain spell has also raised hope for a healthy wheat crop in the Barani areas.
The downpour which started on Friday and continued till Monday, has brought a pleasant change in the atmosphere.
According to Met Office Islamabad, more rains with isolated heavy snowfall over the hills, are expected in most parts of the country.
The scattered rain with snowfall which also occurred in Azad Kashmir, Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan has brought hope for farmers.
According to an agriculture expert Attique Ahmed Khan, these rains are beneficial for wheat crop and would have positive effect on the entire region, which is dependent on rain for the wheat crop.
The present spell of rain was much-awaited and farmers were praying for rains as they have to depend on rains, a small farmer Badshah Khan said.
"I was dancing with joy because my plants were dancing with joy too," he said.
Khan said rain is very good, adding that the brown stuff has turned to be green just like magic.
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