Production of medicines: UN be urged to allow Pakistan cultivate poppy

The Senate Standing Committee on States and Frontier Region (SAFRON) on Wednesday recommended that the United Nations (UN) should be urged to allow Pakistan to cultivate poppy for production of medicines.
The committee met with Hafiz Rashid Ahmed in the chair at the Parliament House and was briefed by officials of the Anti-Narcotics Force regarding the steps taken to purge Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), especially Mohmand Agency from narcotics.
The officials of the Ministry of Anti-Narcotic told the committee that limited and licensed poppy cultivation was allowed to India and Turkey for the production of essential medicines. The committee observed that the limited poppy cultivation should also be allowed in Pakistan for production of medicines by chalking out a legal procedure.
The panel was told that in FATA, the Mohmand Agency is one of the traditional poppy growing areas, however, due to sustained efforts by the concerned political administration and the launching of developmental projects under Mohmand Area Development Project, a tremendous decrease in poppy crop has been witnessed in the last five years.
The committee was further told that opium cultivation was at 986 acres in 2004-05 in Mohmand Agency, however, with the introduction of the development schemes and enforcement measures, illicit crop cultivation steadily declined to 218 acres in 2009-10.
The officials said that the achievement was periodically verified by joint ground and aerial visits, monitoring and also the opening of inaccessible poppy growing valleys by carving roads into them, besides providing alternate legitimate income sources to the poppy growers.
They told the committee that under Mohmand Agency Development Project (Phase-III), a number of substitute means of livelihood have been provided to the locals, which help curb poppy cultivation in the area. The committee was further told that various schemes have been initiated for development and exploration of natural resources to improve the rural economy like agriculture, communication, irrigation and drinking water supply schemes.
The panel expressed dissatisfaction over the development schemes being undertaken for the last three years in the entire tribal areas and stressed the need for making the projects more transparent, whereas the committee also summoned report of the financial assistance being given to FATA for the last three years. The committee also called upon the government to initiate special projects for the welfare of the tribal people so as to address their apprehensions.