Repaying loans: Minister directs officials to facilitate farmers

LAHORE: Minister Agriculture Syed Ashiq Hussain Kirmani has directed the officials concerned to facilitate the farmers in rural areas by allowing them to repay loans not only through Bank of Punjab branches but also via Jazz Cash.

He directed that a system be developed to enable this service. The recovery period for Kissan Card loans is from April 15 to May 15, but farmers are encouraged to repay by April 30 to become eligible for Phase 2 starting May 1.

The Minister issued these directives while chairing high-level meeting held at the Bank of Punjab’s head office on Tuesday. The meeting focused on the recovery process of Phase 1 of the Chief Minister’s Kissan Card and evaluated the mechanism for Phase 2. Secretary Agriculture Punjab Iftikhar Ali Sahoo and Bank of Punjab President Zafar Masud also attended the meeting.

Kirmani stated that the Kissan Card program serves as a milestone in the progress of Punjab’s agriculture sector and the well-being of farmers. Phase 1 of the Kissan Card program has been highly successful, benefiting a large number of farmers. He expressed confidence that the repayment rate in Phase 1 would be encouraging.

Through the Kissan Card, farmers will now be able to purchase not only agricultural inputs but also diesel. Kissan Card holders will receive 30 percent cash and 25 percent diesel as part of their loan facility. A briefing was given to the minister, stating that 1,866 PSO petrol pumps have been registered to facilitate diesel distribution, while 3,250 merchants have been registered across Punjab.

Secretary Agriculture Punjab Iftikhar Ali Sahoo stressed the importance of using social media campaigns to inform farmers about the repayment process time framework for Phase 1 loans. He also instructed the Agriculture Extension Department’s district and tehsil-level staff to fully cooperate with designated representatives of the Bank of Punjab for loan recovery.

The meeting was also attended by Special Secretary Agriculture Agha Nabeel Akhtar, Director Generals Agriculture Naveed Asmat Kahloon, Chaudhry Abdul Hamid, along with representatives from Bank of Punjab, Punjab Information Technology Board (PITB), and other officials.

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