Steps to be taken to ensure quality pesticides, fertilizers

LAHORE, Jun 02 (APP): Punjab Agriculture Secretary Iftikhar Ali Sahoo has said that all possible steps would be taken to ensure the availability of quality pesticides and fertilizers in the market for better management of cotton crop.

He said this while presiding over a meeting on Cotton Cultivation and Management Plan, said a press release issued here on Friday.

The secretary said that the campaign against the sale of adulterated pesticides and substandard fertilizers would be made more effective, adding that all the divisional directors of Agriculture department should coordinate with the district administration and other relevant departments for the implementation of the cotton management plan to ensure the achievement of the cotton production target.

Iftikhar Ali directed all the divisional officers to finalize the data related to cotton cultivation and farmers by the June 15th, so that, better planning for the upcoming cotton crop could be done. He said that agricultural extension workers should guide the farmers for better care of cotton. Weeds and harmful insects should be controlled by field visits and replanting should be done in the areas where the cotton crop got affected with the recent rains, he added.

The meeting was told that till now, 91.56 percent of the target area in Bahawalpur division, 96.91 percent Multan division and 96.16 percent DG Khan division had been brought under cotton cultivation while in Sahiwal, Sargodha and Faisalabad divisions 100 percent cotton cultivation target had been achieved.

Punjab Task Force Additional Secretary Muhammad Shabbir Ahmad Khan told meeting that zero tolerance policy was being implemented for the dealers found involved in the sale of adulterated pesticides and substandard fertilizers during the cotton season to ensure the supply of quality agricultural inputs to the farmers.

Later, Iftikhar Ali Sahoo also met the representatives of Ginning Association to improve the cotton supply chain.