Submitted by:

Muskan Sattar
Registration:
FDST221102020
Submitted To:
Dr. Muhammad Nawaz
Department:
HNAD-1A
Farming system of Punjab
A large proportion of Punjab, Pakistan farmers are cotton-wheat farmers.The *cotton-wheat cropping
system is considered a"grain plus cash"cropping system*
Important crops produced in Punjab include rice, and wheat, maize, bajra, sugarcane, oilseeds and
cotton. However, rice and wheat alone constitute 80 percent of the total gross cropped area.This type of
farming are done in Punjab
Hosting the five main rivers of Pakistan-Indus, Chenab, Sutlej, Jhelum, and Ravi-Punjab is known as the
'grain basket' of the country for its rich fertile alluvial soils and irrigated plains.It contributes to over half
of Pakistan's Gross Domestic Product(GDP)[3] and is home to half of its population [4].This makes
Punjab the best area in Pakistan.

Why Punjab is good for farming?

Punjab receives good rainfall during the monsoon season from July to September which is very good for
the Paddy(Rice)crop grown in that season.The state also has a good infrastructure for irrigation.Out of
the total agriculture land of Punjab, almost 99% is irrigated through canals or tube-wells.That is why
Punjab is good for farming.

What is the problem by farmers in Punjab?

Mono-cropping and Faulty Cropping Practice:The primary reason for the looming environmental
crises in Punjab is the introduction of intensive agriculture under the Green Revolution.The double
mono-cropping of wheat and rice has increased the grain harvest in Punjab since the sixties

Three Major Challenges facing farmers

So those three factors-water, which is beyond Their control; labour, which is beyond their control;
and the shipping problems, also beyond their control-those three factors that farmers cannot adapt
to and cannot change their practices to accommodates, those are the biggest challenges.

Two main problems in farming

Two of the most major problems in agriculture are the loss of agricultural land and the decrease in
the varieties of crops and livestock produced.

Farming techniques
•Tillage
•Soil Erosion
•Contaminant
•Aquaculture
•Biodiversity
•Environmental Impact Assessment
•Irrigation
•Organic Farming

Punjab already has achieved very high productivity for all its important crops and the state does not
have much scope to improve yield.Clearly, diversified from rice wheat-rice Cropping pattern to other
crops is important to both increase farm incomes and to conserve soil and water resources.

• Horticulture

Fruits and vegetables together constitute only 4.23% of the gross cropped area.However the sector
contribute 11.3% to the total growth in agriculture and allied activities between 2000-01 and 2015-
16.The gross value of output from fruits and vegetables has increased but the year-on- year growth has
been erratic.
Punjab makes a very small contribution to the total production of fruits and vegetables in the country
( *2%* of fruits and *2.7%* of vegetables).The production of fruits increased from *0.75* million MT in
*2005-06* to *2.0* million MT in 2018-19. Similarly, the production of vegetables increased from *2.43*
million MT to *5.0* million MT in the same period.The increased in production can be attributed to a
rise in the yield per hectare for both vegetables and fruits as the areas under these crops did not much
over the years.In term of production in 2016-17, the important vegetables crops produced in Punjab are
reddish(2nd largest producer), carrot (2nd largest producer),peas(3rd largest producer),potato(6th
largest producer), bottle gourd(7th largest producer),and cauliflower (10th largest producer).kin-now,
orange, malta, lemon , guava are the important fruits grown in Punjab.The state is currently, accounting
for *25%* of the country's production.

• Livestock

The livestock sector is an important sub-sector in the state as it accounted for 31.3% of the total value
Dil f output in TE 2015-16.The composition of livestock products in the total value of output from the
sector is as under:

• Milk

Diary contribute 82% of the total output from the livestock segment.Milk production has increased
impressively in the past.Production and average growth of milk in Punjab for 2000-01 to 2016-17.The
Punjab state co-operative milk producer's federation limited (Milk-fed)was established in 1973 to
provide a remunerative milk market and to disseminate technical inputs to milk producer's.

• Meat and Egg

The share of meat in the gross value of output has been more or less stagnant( 3.7% of GVOA) in the
past two decades.According to the largest livestock census(2012),the total livestock and poultry
population in Punjab are 81.2 lakh and 167.9 respectively.The estimated meat production in 2916-17
stood at 248.6 thousand MT.The production of eggs in Punjab was 47,825 lakh in 2016-17.The per capita
availability of eggs is 166 per annum in Punjab.

• Fisheries

Fisheries contribute only 1% of the total value of output from agriculture and allied activities.Only inland
fish can be produced in Punjab as it does not possess any coastline.There are 868 km of rivers,13
notified reservoirs,11,200 km of canals and 14,510 acres of small reservoirs in the state.In addition,
there are 9318 constructed village ponds, covering an area of 32,597 acres.Fish production increased at
a rate of 6.3% per annum for the period of 2000-01 to 2016-17.Quality seed production should be
promoted through the private sector so that fish seed is available at affordable prices.Fish seed
production has remained almost stagnant in Punjab while it has increased steadily in the neighbouring
state of Haryana.

Modernizing Punjab’s farming to benefit farmers and consumers

Replacing a nearly century-old law, the PAMRA Act—short for Punjab Agriculture Marketing Regulatory
Authority Act 2020—was approved by the Punjab Assembly last March. The reform establishes a new
and more transparent legal regime to market agricultural produce to help safeguard the free flow of
crops and stimulate food supplies. It also comes at a critical time as the COVID-19 pandemic is disrupting
socio-economic activities and threatening food security. 
Pakistan’s agricultural marketing system has long been shaped by the heavy hand of the government
and marked by lack of transparency, the dominance of vested interests, unfair treatment to producers,
and welfare losses to consumers.  Farmers’ produce used to pass through seven or eight different hands
before reaching the consumer. Consequently, market margins were high, but producers were left with
little.
“There is an urgent need to revamp our agriculture marketing system, which has been neglected for too
long,” says PAMRA Chairman, Naveed Bhinder. “We will focus on improving standards for grades and
packaging as well as training on good agricultural practices for all stakeholders in the agricultural value
chain, including farmers and logistic companies. We will also improve revenue collection and stop
leakages so we can re-invest in our marketing infrastructure,” he added.

Pakistan’s agricultural marketing system has long been shaped by the heavy hand of the government

and marked by lack of transparency, the dominance of vested interests, unfair treatment to producers,

and welfare losses to consumers

Amid the COVID-19 outbreak, PAMRA has ensured that the trade of agricultural produce continues
without comprising quality and safety.  Disinfectant tunnels and temperature scans have become
routine. Social distancing is enforced, and auction times are scattered to avoid congestion in the market
yards. Direct trading arrangements and product standards defined through PAMRA provide more
flexibility to farmers and traders and reassurance to consumers.
Overall, PAMRA will help enrich Pakistan’s food basket and provide a better deal for the farming
community and consumers. These modernization efforts received support through the World Bank-
funded SMART (Strengthening Markets for Agricultural and Rural Transformation) Project.
 “As a grower, my primary concern is with true price discovery and prompt payment at the markets. If,
as indicated in the law, the Authority focuses on fair auctioning, it will go a long way to meeting our
demands,” said Mr. Rana Tufail, a farmer representative from Punjab.
Also, the new law presents opportunities to catch up with neighboring countries that are moving toward
electronic settlement and e-auction systems.
How will the PAMRA Act transform Pakistan’s agriculture marketing systems?
The PAMRA Act allows the emergence of non-traditional market channels such as supermarkets, virtual
markets, and farmer markets, changes the power structure of the market, and enhances financial
efficiency and transparency.  It will do so in the following ways:

 It mitigates the role of middlemen and changes the power structure of the market. It reduces
government intervention, which always benefited vested interests at the expense of small and
medium producers.
 The PAMRA Act ensures gender representation in the governing body of the Authority.
 It confines the role of market committees to governing and improving the efficiency of the
market yards, but with broader representation of key stakeholders, including farmers and
brokers.
 It reduces market fees and regulates grading and packaging standards. Only the first transaction
between the grower and the trader will be charged; and the fee will be directly credited to the
banks, reducing the need for coins and bills.
 It improves physical infrastructure and processing equipment for more reliable grading and
inspections and for the recording of financial transactions.
 It allows multiple marketing channels to exist in parallel, replacing the monopoly of the mandi
system. The private sector will be allowed to establish markets and collection centers. Farmers
will be allowed to sell directly to retailers, bypassing the wholesale markets without having to
register with PARMA.
 It will help expedite bulk warehousing services in the private sector and promote the
development of Electric Warehouse Receipts.  Producers will benefit from better access to
formal credit.  
 It establishes a robust agricultural market information system for Punjab province.
“The PAMRA Act allows the emergence of non-traditional market channels, changes the power structure

of the market, and enhances financial efficiency and transparency.”

As Mr. Wasif Khurshid, Secretary of the Department of Agriculture, put it, “the passage of the law will
allow diverse marketing channels-for example farmer markets, private wholesale and specialized
markets-thereby creating a healthy competition in service delivery and value-addition.”
Standard grading and packing regulated by the Act are good news to consumers.  Ms. Kaneez Bibi, a
buyer at Iqbal Town, said, “When I bought strawberries before, I was never sure that beneath the top
layer  the fruit would be of similar quality. Getting fruit and vegetables in standard grades would be a
noticeable improvement.”
Mr. Abdur Razzaq, a visitor at Sunday Bazaar, Shaman Lahore, commented, “In the past, all agricultural
produce used to be sold in loose packing, making it hard to tell the weight or number of pieces in a bag.
That will change with uniform packaging.”
By promoting competition and allowing diversification, the PAMRA act will enhance the dynamics of
agricultural markets and ensure more income opportunities for farmers and better quality for
consumers.