MULTAN: Pakistan Kissan Ittehad (PKI) announced Multan-Lahore march on May 10 to give vent to their anger and concerns against the delay in official wheat procurement and exploitation of growers.
While holding press conference here Sunday, Chairman Pakistan Kissan Ittehad Khalid Khokhar stated that the march would be attended by thousands of the peasants. He added that farmers would join protest march with their families, tractor trollies, and animals. The protest will continue till the imposition of an agriculture emergency in the province, he said.
About the agriculture emergency, he stated that the government would have to announce start of wheat purchase, low electricity tariff and decrease in Urea fertilizer prices. About the recent wheat crisis, he alleged that the decision was wheat import was based on corrupt practices. When a bumper stock was available in the country, there was no need to import wheat, he added. He called for punishment to the persons involved in the mega scandal.
Khalid Khokhar stated that the farmers were under immense tension due to lack of wheat purchase. Farmers are not in a position to sow next important crops including cotton and rice, he said and added that Pakistan used to export material worth 31.5 billion dollars annually. However, the export of nearly 22 billion dollars is comprising of agriculture products, he added. In case the farmers do not focus on next crop, there can be decrease in country’s exports, he feared.
He lamented that country’s agriculture sector had always been ignored. However, food security was one of the major issues across the globe.
Khokhar added that the spending on agriculture sector was only 0.8 percent of the total GDP. How can a country progress if the spending on agriculture is too meager, he posed question. The Chairman Pakistan Kissan Ittehad expressed concern stating that society did not give due regard to farmers. He however urged civil society, lawyers, students, journalists and others to join farmers protest.
