Rawalpindi : Secretary Agriculture Punjab, Iftikhar Ali Sahoo, visited Rawalpindi and chaired a review meeting on the Potohar Agriculture Transformation Plan, which is being implemented at a cost of Rs7 billion.
The meeting was attended by Chief, Barani Area Development Agency, Muhammad Arif Khan Niazi; Additional Director General, Soil Conservation, Rawalpindi, Dr. Pervaiz Sikandar; Director Agriculture (Extension), Rawalpindi Division, Syed Shahid Iftakhar Bukhari; Chief Scientist/Director, Barani Agricultural Research Institute (BARI), Chakwal, Dr. Nadeem Ahmad; and Senior Scientist, Centre of Excellence for Olive Research and Training, Chakwal, Inam-ul-Haq.
Speaking on the occasion, Secretary Agriculture Punjab Iftikhar Ali Sahoo said that the Potohar Agriculture Transformation Plan will prove a milestone for agricultural development in the region. He stated that construction of 400 mini dams is underway under the plan with a subsidy of Rs1.75 million per unit.
He directed the concerned officials to further expedite the installation of Lift Irrigation Systems being provided with a 70 percent subsidy under the Transformation Plan. He also instructed that the target of land improvement on 4,500 acres through bulldozers should be achieved within the stipulated timeframe.
Secretary Agriculture Punjab further added that, for the first time, ginger cultivation is being introduced in the Potohar region with a subsidy of Rs3.29 million per acre.
