ISLAMABAD: Wheat procurement campaign has been started all across the Punjab province to procure 4.7 million tons of the commodity this year.
"Food Department of Punjab would procure 3.5 million tons of wheat while the Pakistan Agriculture Storage and Services Corporation (PASSCO) would procure 1.26 million tons of the commodity during the current season," Wheat Development Commissioner in the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MinFA) Dr Shakeel Ahmad Khan told APP here Wednesday,
Total wheat procurement target for the year 2010-11 has set at 6.57 million tons for tackling domestic requirements as well as keeping the strategic reserves in the country, he added.
He informed that PASSCO would procure total 1.3 million tons of wheat from all across the country including 1.26 million in Punjab and 40,000 tons from Sindh.
Dr Shakeel informed that Sindh government has procured about 250,000 tons of wheat till date while the crop harvesting was in full swing in province, he added.
Meanwhile, General Manager PASSCO (field) Tanveer Hussain said that the corporation would start procurement in Punjab from April 25 adding about 201 procurement centers have been established in nine zones of Punjab and Sindh.
Out of the total centers PASSCO has established 176 centers in Punjab and 11 centers in Sindh where as 14 procurement centers were proposed for the Balochistan province, he added.
GM PASSCO informed that all arrangements were finalized to procure the commodity on government-fixed rates of Rs. 950 per 40 kg adding that sacks for packing about 800,000 tons of wheat have been provided to the centers.
The centers would release these sacks for farmers at the ratio of eight bags per acare for small scale growers, however, 200 bags would be provided to large scale growers after verification of land record from Revenue Department, he added.
It may be recalled that bumper wheat crop over 24.2 million tons expected this year, where as the crop was cultivated over 21.99 million hectare land across the country.
The wheat production has been estimated at 18.2 million tons in Punjab while in Sindh 4.2 million tons, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) 1.1 million tons and Balochistan 0.17 million tons wheat production estimated during current year.
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