Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz has said that the provincial government’s flagship Kissan Card programme had significantly strengthened farmers through interest-free financing and agricultural mechanization, as officials reported that loan disbursements had reached Rs360 billion with a recovery rate of 99%.
Chairing a meeting to review the Agriculture Department’s performance, the chief minister was informed that 900,000 Kissan Cards had been issued across the province. Officials said another 50,000 farmers had recently been enrolled, bringing the programme close to its target of one million beneficiaries.
According to a report today, farmers had received Rs360 billion in interest-free loans under the Chief Minister’s Kissan Card scheme. Officials said nearly 80% of the disbursed financing had been used to purchase fertilizers, reflecting strong demand for agricultural inputs.
The meeting was also told that Rs116 billion had been earmarked for the Kharif crop season, of which Rs62 billion had already been utilized. Approximately 75% of the seasonal financing was spent on fertilizers to support crop cultivation.
Officials informed the chief minister that international audit firm KPMG would submit its impact assessment report on the Kissan Card programme by Sept. 30. They added that efforts were also underway to introduce and promote the initiative at the international level.
Reviewing the province’s agricultural mechanization programme, the meeting was informed that 34,000 green tractors were being distributed in three phases. According to officials, 41% of the beneficiaries were receiving a tractor for the first time, while 20% had also purchased modern farm machinery alongside the subsidized tractors.
The briefing further revealed that nearly 32% of tractor recipients had begun offering mechanized farming services to other growers, helping expand access to modern agricultural equipment across rural areas.
Maryam Nawaz said the government had empowered farmers through practical initiatives and maintained that, for the first time in Punjab’s history, 50,000 tractors would be distributed over a three-year period. She said no previous provincial administration had implemented a tractor distribution programme on such a large scale.
The chief minister added that the entire tractor allocation process had been fully computerized, eliminating human intervention and ensuring greater transparency in the distribution of benefits.