PM directs to continue subsidy on fertilizers
- By Web Desk -
- Jan 13, 2017
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Friday directed for continuation of the provision of subsidy on fertilizers.
The prime minister said that agriculture is the backbone of the national economy and farmers play a pivotal role to strengthen the economy of the country. He said that farmers will be provided all the basic facilities for improvement of the country.
Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif had also requested the federal government to restore the subsidy provided on fertilizers.
A statement by the CM House had said that twenty million farmers of will receive a financial benefit of Rs. 72 billion rupees after the restoration of subsidy.
Pakistan People’s Party co-chairperson Asif Ali Zardari had on Thursday also condemned government’s decision to withdraw subsidy on fertilizer calling it “a callous and inhuman decision and a conspiracy against the poor and the under privileged rural population”.
He said that the decision will severely affect the agriculture sector and drastically increase the poverty level in the rural areas and also affect interprovincial harmony.
The former president has said that the government was trying to achieve political mileage, and demanded that the decision should be immediately reversed.
The federal government has launched a subsidy scheme in 2016 worth Rs.28 billion rupees which provides a cost reduction of Rs.400 per bag on fertilizer.