KARACHI: Provincial Minister Sharjeel Memon on Sunday said that the Sindh Cabinet has fixed a support price of wheat at Rs4,000 per 40kg for 2022-23.
The cabinet meeting was held under the chairmanship of Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah here at CM House. The meeting was attended by provincial ministers, advisors, the chief secretary and concerned secretaries.
Various ministers, advisors, and special assistants attended the meeting from the flood-affected areas through video link. The Minister Information, through press statements, shared the decisions taken in the cabinet meeting.
CM Advisor on Agriculture Manzoor Wassan said that the agricultural lands were submerged, and farmers needed a lot of effort to dewater them and prepare them for the next crop.
He said that if the wheat is not grown to a certain proportion, the province may face a famine-like situation and suggested offering a good price to the growers as an incentive.
Responding to a question, the minister said that standing crops worth Rs50 billion have been washed away. “I have discussed with the UN secretary-general that we would have to offer an agricultural package, otherwise the grower would not be able to sow Rabi crops,” he said and added he was trying to dewater agricultural lands so that Rabi crops could be planted by the first week of December.
According to the Sindh chief minister, his government is trying to prepare at least 75 per cent of agricultural lands for the wheat crop. “We have lost our standing paddy and cotton crops in this Kharif and would not be able to afford to lose Rabi crops,” he added.
The chief minister also deplored the indecent and inhuman statements that were issued to the flood-affected people who have come to Karachi.
“Karachi is part of the province, and we are making arrangements to shift them to the camps and will look after them,” he said adding that the displaced persons were “in pain, and their dispossessions [in the flood] demand that each and every one of us, according to our status and position, should help in their rehabilitation” CM Shah also admitted that energy providers, including K-Electric, Hesco, and Sepco, have failed to deliver. “I am sorry to say that our power distribution companies, particularly the Hesco and Sepco had no contingency plan to continue power supply at least to the pumping stations involved in pumping out rainwater from the towns and cities,” he said.
–Agencies
