ISLAMABAD – Chairman of Kisan Ittehad Pakistan, Khalid Hussain, has warned that farmers will boycott wheat cultivation if the government does not fix the support price at Rs4,500 per maund.
In a statement, Khalid Hussain said that the Prime Minister’s announcement to purchase wheat at Rs3,500 per maund is unfair, as this rate is below the cost of production, which now ranges between Rs4,000 and Rs4,500 per maund.
He criticized the government for making unilateral decisions without consulting farmers, calling such actions detrimental to the agriculture sector.
“Farmers are demanding a fair return for their hard work, not charity,” he said, adding that the recent floods had already weakened the farming community, and the proposed low wheat rate would further burden them.
The chairman also demanded that the sugarcane support price be increased from Rs350 to Rs600 per maund, noting that sugar is being sold at Rs175 per kilogram, and urged the government to set the cotton price at Rs12,000 per maund to offset farmers’ losses.
It is worth mentioning that the federal government recently approved the national wheat policy, setting the support price at Rs3,500 per maund.
Under the new policy, the federal and provincial governments will procure around 6.2 million tons of strategic wheat reserves, with no restrictions on inter-provincial movement to ensure nationwide availability.
