Islamabad, October 25, 2022 (PPI-OT): Federal Minister for National Food Security and Research Tariq Bashir Cheema chaired a high-level meeting of the Committee on Food, Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries to consult, direct and facilitate on the issues of agriculture, livestock, fisheries and food security in the country.
The meeting was attended by provincial ministers for agriculture, livestock and fisheries, and officials of the relevant departments from all provinces, Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJ and K) and Gilgit Baltistan (GB). Secretary National Food Security and Research Zafar Hassan briefed the committee on the situation of wheat stock in the country.
He apprised that there are sufficient strategic reserves of the wheat in the country. “Currently, public sector wheat reserves stand sufficient and are more than the last year,” he said. Federal Minister Tariq Bashir Cheema said that because of the floods and rains, we are in a state of emergency. The officials should take decisions in the best interest of the public, he added.
MD PASSCO Saeed Ahmad Nawaz told the participants that the rains and floods had caused damages to the wheat stock at the government warehouse. Wheat fit for human consumption has been successfully separated from the damaged stock and is being supplied, he said. Waseem-ul-Hassan, Food Security Commissioner apprised the forum that free wheat seeds will be delivered to the farmers in the flood-affected farmers by 10th November. “We will deliver these seeds before the end of the sowing season,” he added.
The forum was apprised that a digital application has been developed to deliver and distribute seeds among the flood-affected farmers. Federal Minister Tariq Bashir Cheema appreciated the initiative and said that the same digital platform can be used in the future to provide direct subsidy to the farmers. The committee members also directed to prepare an umbrella project for the livestock in the flood affected areas, to control diseases in animals and mitigate shortage of fodder.
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