National Assembly Speaker For Strengthening ZTBL, More Farmer- Friendly Policies

Umer Jamshaid Published July 24, 2020 | 07:08 PM

National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser Friday underlined the need for strengthening the Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited (ZTBL) and devising more farmer-friendly policies to fulfill their basic requirements in agriculture sector, which was considered backbone of the national economy

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 24th Jul, 2020 ):National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser Friday underlined the need for strengthening the Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited (ZTBL) and devising more farmer-friendly policies to fulfill their basic requirements in agriculture sector, which was considered backbone of the national economy.

"Fulfilling basic requirements of the farmers community will have a positive impact on our agriculture sector," he passed these remarks during question-hour session of the National Assembly after legislators highlighted problems being faced by farmers in getting loans.

He also expressed serious concerns over fast vanishing of agriculture land due to certain reasons and suggested the House to move a joint motion to address what it called a 'serious issue' during the current session.

Khawaja Muhammad Asif of PML-N also highlighted importance of agriculture sector in strengthening the national economy and its role in creating employment opportunities.

The NA Speaker asked the PML-N legislature to submit his proposals in that regard so that it could be referred to the committee concerned for thorough debate.

Replying to a question, Parliamentary Secretary for Finance and Revenue Makhdoom Zain Hussain Qureshi said at present there was no proposal under consideration to open any branch of ZTBL in NA-50 as ZTBL's Tank branch was looking after the credit needs of the farmers of NA-50.

However, he said the request could be considered after conducting a Branch Opening Survey, and if it was found feasible, it would be included in the Annual Branch Expansion Plan for the year 2021 to be submitted to State Bank of Pakistan in October 2020.