Huge Funds Allocated To Promote Ginger Cultivation: PARB Chairman

FAISALABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 26th Apr, 2025) The government has allocated huge funds to boost ginger cultivation, said Dr. Abid Mahmood, chairman of Punjab Agricultural Research board (PARB).

Addressing a one-day training seminar at Ayub Agricultural Research Institute (AARI) Faisalabad, he said that cultivation of summer vegetables like ginger in open fields is no longer feasible due to harsh summer weather in Punjab.

However, tunnel farming would help the farmers to cater to rising demand for ginger and other vegetables while achieving higher yields per acre, he added.

He also highlighted the importance of tunnel farming and said that ginger and other vegetables could be cultivated easily in tunnels due to rapid change in climate conditions.

The government would also provide subsidies of billions of rupees to the farmers to support vegetable cultivation under tunnels and the growers should avail from this opportunity at maximum extent to increase their income and play role in national food security, he added.

The seminar brought together a distinguished panel of experts including Dr. Javed Ahmed Chief Scientist Wheat Department), Dr. Muhammad Iqbal Principal Scientist Vegetables Department, Deputy Director Agricultural Information Department Faisalabad Muhammad Ishaq Lashari, Ginger Expert Muhammad Aamir Latif and former directors Dr. Makhdoom Hussain and Najeeb Ullah in addition to progressive farmers and representatives of private seed companies.

During the session, Najeeb Ullah highlighted the widespread use of ginger in Pakistani cuisine as a spice as well as its applications in pickles, syrups and traditional medicine due to its medicinal properties.

Dr. Muhammad Iqbal pointed out that Pakistan heavily relies on ginger imports, which depletes valuable foreign exchange.

He urged the private companies to take a leading role in promoting ginger cultivation similar to the potato industry.

He explained that ginger is typically planted between late February and mid-March. He said that intense hot and dry winds during May and June in Punjab can severely damage ginger crops. Hence, the farmers should adopt necessary protective measures to save their ginger crops during hot summer, he added.

Muhammad Aamir Latif said that moderate and humid climates are ideal for ginger growth. In this connection, tunnel farming is imperative due to challenging environment in Punjab, he added.

He also thanked the agri scientists for advancements in tissue culture technology and said that ginger plants are now being provided to the farmers at affordable rates.

He said that research efforts have improved production techniques and the farmers should initially cultivate ginger on a small scale to gain experience and develop their own seed stock.

Agricultural scientists from the Vegetable Department at AARI led by Muhammad Aamir have successfully propagated ginger plants through tissue culture.

Progressive farmers from the Pothohar region shared their success stories and revealed that yields of 1.5 to 2 kilograms per plant are achievable if the ginger growers act upon the recommendation of agriculture experts.

Later, shields were also distributed among the guests while the certificates provided to the participants.