Farmer Facilitation Centres To Be Established Soon, Says Punjab Sec Agriculture

MULTAN, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 25th May, 2024) A divisional review meeting regarding the cotton crop was held led by Punjab Agriculture Secretary Iftikhar Ali Sahoo.

The meeting reviewed the ongoing field activities related to cotton cultivation in Multan and DG Khan divisions.

On this occasion, Punjab Agriculture Secretary Iftikhar Ali Sahoo directed divisional directors to increase field visits and intensify ongoing field activities to provide technical guidance to farmers.

Departmental action will be taken against officers and staff over negligence and carelessness in this campaign.

He further stated that farmer facilitation centers will be established in the coming days, for which appropriate locations will be selected.

The centers will ensure the availability of quality pesticides and spraying machinery at fixed rates for farmers.

He also emphasized to report the statistics of the cotton crop accurately.

Officers failing to meet the cotton cultivation targets will be held accountable.

Secretary agriculture further said that cotton was a challenging crop.

He said that there was a need to perform field activities with more dedication and efforts compared to the previous year.

Mr Iftikhar directed the relevant formations to tighten the monitoring process to bring elements involved in business of fake fertilizers and pesticides to justice and take strict legal action against them.

Divisional and district committee meetings should be held regularly. Considering the ongoing heatwave in South Punjab, an advisory on cotton should be issued.

On this occasion, Secretary Agriculture South Punjab, Saqib Ali Ateel, stated that caution should be exercised while issuing spraying advisories for the cotton crop and maximum delay in first spray.

Commissioner Multan Maryam Khan mentioned that full cooperation and support are being provided to the Agriculture department to achieve the target of cotton cultivation and production. Efforts were being made to contribute to this campaign as a national duty.

This year, a target of cultivating cotton on 9,45,000 acres has been set for the Multan division, for which full support is being provided. She further stated that divisional committee meetings were being held regularly to guide the farmers.

The meeting was attended by Additional Secretary Agriculture Task Force Punjab Muhammad Shabbir Ahmed Khan, while Commissioner D.G. Khan and all deputy commissioners of Multan and D.G. Khan divisions participated via video link.

The meeting was also attended by Deputy Commissioner Multan Rizwan Qadeer, Director General Agriculture Pest Warning Punjab Dr. Amir Rasool, consultant Department of Agriculture Dr. Anjum Ali, Director General Agriculture Extension Punjab Chaudhry Abdul Hameed and others.