The Ministry for National Food Security & Research (NFS&R) has failed to implement prime minister's 100-day plan to formulate a viable policy for the uplift of agriculture & livestock sector, owing to late appointment of the Minister.
Sources in the Ministry as well as in the attached departments of the ministry including Pakistan Agricultural Research Council (PARC) and National Agricultural Research Centre (NARC) told Business Recorder that the incumbent Minister Sahabzada Mehboob Sultan took oath on October 5, while initial cabinet was announced on August 20.
The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government has announced a five point agenda to improve, transform and uplift the agriculture sector: (i) Value addition into the entire agriculture sectors including livestock; (ii) Impose agriculture emergency to increase farmer profitability; (iii) Subsidise and improve access to finance for farmers; (iv) Transform agriculture produce markets and incentivize value addition; and (v) Upgrade and implement National Water Policy.
A senior official of the Ministry said the minister was still engaged in consultations with the relevant stakeholders to finalize the Ministry's vision for PM's 100 days agenda and was attending a meeting on livestock and fisheries development on Tuesday.
The officials said the new minister had only 50 days against 100 days of the other ministers and he spent all this time getting briefings from officials concerned.
However the officials said "over the last 50 days in line with the PM's vision we have deliberated on water conservation, increasing per acre yield of important crops, protecting crops from various diseases, creation of new agriculture markets along with improving existing ones".
The Ministry has suggested the government to provide cheap inputs including fertilizer, electricity, tractors, ending the role of the middleman, better storage, agri loans and access to agri market to the farming community especially small farmers. In line with the PM's vision "we have also recommended the government to make loans available for the livestock owners in far flung areas of the country especially in Balochistan, KP, Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan aimed at improving the financial sate of the farmers which will increase milk, meat and skin production", the officials said.
They added that the Ministry in collaboration with other stakeholders including provincial agriculture departments has recommended starting a project of water conservation which will cost Rs 50 billion.
The project "National Programme for improvement of Watercourses in Pakistan Phase-II", would be undertaken across the country with a target of lining over 73,000 watercourses and laser levelling of 12,110 units. The first phase of this project has greatly helped in conserving water in canals," the officials maintained.
The Ministry has also recommended developing an estimated 630,000 hectares of unutilized lands in Barani areas of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) by constructing small and mini dams in line with a past project of PARC and Agency for Barani Area Development Punjab.
Moreover rainwater conservation in KP requires small investments in infrastructure and can be implemented through the local governments. These infrastructures include construction of check dams, water retaining facilities, water storage reservoirs, spurs, water ponds and terracing etc to harness rainwater to be used for irrigation and other purposes.
This correspondent tried to get the version of the Federal Minister for National Food Security and Research, Sahibzada Mehboob Sultan by phone as well as by visiting his office but was unable to contact him till the filing of this report.
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