Green Tractor Scheme expanded to benefit 20,000 more farmers

ISLAMABAD: Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif has directed authorities to distribute 20,000 tractors among farmers in the next fiscal year, according to a provincial government statement.

The statement said the next phase of the Green Tractor Scheme will offer a subsidy of Rs1.5 million on high-horsepower tractors and Rs750,000 on tractors in the 50 to 65 horsepower range. Earlier under the scheme, the provincial government provided a subsidy of Rs1 million on 9,500 high-power tractors. It also said 10,000 tractors ranging from 50 to 65 horsepower are being supplied to farmers with a subsidy of Rs500,000 each.

According to the statement, the Punjab government has also launched, for the first time, an interest-free loan scheme of up to Rs30 million for the purchase of 12 categories of high-tech agricultural machinery. Through this programme, nearly 200 high-tech combined harvesters have been provided to farmers.

The statement added that 50 high-tech combined harvesters are being deployed for wheat harvesting operations across the province for the first time. It further said that to check the burning of rice residue and reduce environmental pollution, 5,000 Super Seeders have been given to growers, while rice cultivation on 1.4 million acres has been completed using the technology. In the second phase, another 5,000 Super Seeders are being distributed among rice farmers.