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Cotton fetching higher prices due to Indian ban: Jamote

ISLAMABAD: Federal Agriculture Minister Shafqat Ali Jamote on Tuesday said Pakistan only stood to gain from Indian ban on import of its cotton as the Indian propaganda had led to higher cotton prices in the international market.

Addressing a news conference here, the agriculture minister said the ban was part of the Indian administration's propaganda to malign Pakistan in the international community and to harm Pakistan's economic interests.

He said Pakistani cotton was fetching higher rates in markets other than India that was why Pakistan only stood to gain from the propaganda contrary to the Indian government's wishes.

The minister refused to say if the government would approve a plan to export sugar, maintaining that Pakistan's sugar production had dropped to 3.1 million tonnes during the year which was a substantial drop compared to the previous year's production of 3.5 million tonnes.

He said that there was no shortage of wheat for domestic consumption but the exports to Afghanistan led to the shortage which would be dealt with effectively.

The minister said the government was working on 'right-sizing' of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture to make it more efficient.

The agriculture minister announced formation of a 17-member advisory committee of experts on agriculture to improve efficiency of the farming sector in the country.

He said Pakistan's overall farming output was satisfactory but tea and edible oil seed cultivation required special attention of the policy-makers. He said the government was working in close association with the Rustam Khan Tea Institute based at Shinkiari to promote cultivation of tea in Pakistan.

He said the advisory committee will suggest the transformation of the farm sector from subsistance to commercial farming with special focus on improvement of productivity and raising the standard of living of the small farmers.

He said the advisory committee will suggest ways to deal with the challenge of mechanised farming in areas where landholding patterns do not encouarge farmers to take up mechanised farming.

The advisory committee will also give suggestions on demand-pulled growth in the agriculture sector through better integration of the value chain for local and foreign markets including recommendations regarding credit lines for agro-processing industry.

He said the committee will also suggest measures for equitable participation of the agriculture sector's contribution towards the national resource mobilisation efforts, including recommendations regarding equitable utilisation of resources. Fortuna