LAHORE, Jan 17: The Farmers Associates Pakistan (FAP) on Saturday condemned both federal and provincial governments for blaming each other for urea shortages and price hike at each other, but let the farmers suffer continuously.

The condemnation came during its general body meeting at the Lahore Press Club (LPC). The urea fertiliser disappeared from the market, when needed, and its price shot through the roof because of hoarding and cartelisation.

Briefing the newsmen after the meeting, Vice-Chairman Hussain Jehanian Gardezi said the meeting also criticised the decision to off-load fertilisers at the Gwadar Port instead of Karachi. Transportation from Gwadar to Punjab would take another seven to nine days. The meeting demanded that next consignments should be brought to Karachi ports as it would reduce the transport time from two to four days, the meeting observed.

The meeting also asked the government to ensure judicious water supply in the country and link water allowance to production in an area. The proposal further said the areas with more agricultural production should be given greater share, according to their output.

The participants said though wheat crop in the province should be watered thrice, water shortage had jeopardised the process beyond reasonable limits. Demanding Punjab’s ‘due share’ in the available water resources, they urged the government should regulate supplies in a manner that fulfill water requirement of the wheat crop.

The FAP also called for immediate digging of Mangla-Marala Link Canal to overcome shortage in Chenab and to check Indian tempering with the flows. That would require only digging of 20-25 kilometer long canal that should not be delayed, one of the participants said.

The FAP apprehended the farmers might not be able to get support price of wheat as the private sector was still importing it at very low rates. The government, it demanded, should immediately announce wheat procurement policy and target, besides banning the import by private sector. It also sought release of the subsidy amount as announced earlier for provision of low-price tractors to farmers.