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Speedy credit to farmers ordered
ISLAMABAD - The federal government Friday directed all related
financial institutions and commercial banks to pace up the
process for extending credit line to farmers to achieve
maximum harvest for current Rabi season.
The agriculture sector is facing challenge of acute 51 per
cent water shortage in current Rabi season and government
wants to ward off negative impacts by taking all possible
measures to increase agri production in current fiscal year,
the sources said.
The agriculture loan will be provided to farming community to
help them in buying seeds, fertilizers, tractors and other
related things to boost agri production. The government wants
to achieve two per cent agri growth target in current fiscal
year against negative 2.5 of last financial year.
"We are going to fix different crops targets within next few
days and the government wants to ensure maximum availability
of credit to small farmers for achieving optimum desired
results," sources told The Nation soon after a crucial
meeting, which held under the chairmanship of Federal
Agriculture Minister Khair Mohammad Junejo here on Friday to
over view the prevailing situation in this connection. The
representatives of Agriculture Development Bank Pakistan (ADBP),
State Bank and all commercial banks participated in the
meeting.
"There is impending water crisis facing by agri sector of
Pakistan and it is an uphill task to achieve desired results
in prevailing difficult situation," the sources said.
The sources said that the meeting aimed to streamline the
process of availability of loans to farmers for current crop
season. They directed the authorities concerned to accelerate
the lending process to achieve the targets of different crops
to be fixed on Monday next in a meeting convened by Ministry
of Agriculture, the sources added.
Keeping in view the acute water shortage of 51 per cent for
Rabi crops, the government wants to set realistic targets for
rabi and "homework is under way to provide loans to the
farming community.
According to a Press release issued by MINFAL, Agriculture
Minister Khair Mohammad Junejo said the government decided to
provide all possible loan facilities to farmers.
The meeting noted that the government has increased agri
credit allocation from Rs 49.2 billion in 2000-2001 to 60
billion in 2001-2002, indicating an increase of 11.9 per cent.
The ADBP and other commercial banks presented detailed
break-up of their agri related disbursements in the meeting.
Overall disbursement of agriculture credit during
July-September by the ADBP was Rs 6557.83 million, commercial
banks Rs 4231 million and FBC Rs 900 million.
The meeting was informed that the ADBP and commercial banks
have disbursed to farmers' particularly small tillers more
than 50 per cent of the allocated budget.
November 2, 2001
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