PESHAWAR: Chief Minister Pervez Khattak, presiding over a meeting, has increased allocation for the Insaf Food Security Programme (IFSP) from Rs190 million to Rs1,200 million for the first year of the three-year project.
The CM directed the Agriculture Department to work out financial implications and benefits of the provision of subsidised fertilizers to farmers. The amount would be used to procure certified wheat seed for distribution among farmers holding one to12.5 acres land, said a handout.
The project is part of the government agenda for making the province self-reliant in wheat production. The chief minister also announced subsidy on fertilizers from the next year to further increase wheat production.
The government initiated a three years scheme under ISFP at a cost of Rs3.778 billion to provide free and certified wheat seed to farmers.
The farmers will have to sell half of the produce to the provincial government. The chief minister also asked the Agriculture Department to expedite the process of seed procurement and distribution. The department was directed to make effective publicity to inform the beneficiaries.
The meeting was informed that 9,78,000 farmers would benefit from the scheme and 97, 8000 acres of land would be cultivated in three years and that each year 25 percent increase in wheat harvest worth Rs5,135 million was expected.
