lahore - The PPP’s central Punjab President, Mian Manzoor Ahmed Wattoo on Sunday accused the Punjab government of pursuing anti-farmers policies.
In a statement, Wattoo said that backlash of massive proportion can occur throughout the country against the government policies if it failed to address farmers grievances sooner than later.
The PPP leader asked the government to take his warning seriously because the patience of poor farmers was running out now.
He said meeting of the farmers representatives bodies in Lahore-Farmers Association of Pakistan (FAP), Pakistan Kissan Movement and others-undoubtedly gave credence to his warning.
Wattoo said that PPP fully supported the charter of demands of representative organisations of the farmers.
He observed that Pakistani farmers were being meted out step-motherly treatment because they were being denied the fruits of their blood and toil.
He pointed out that farmers of Pakistan were working under the harsh environment caused due to the apathy of the government while farmers of other countries of the region were benefitting from the generous subsidies by the respective governments.
Pakistani farmers, he said, faced the brunt of expensive inputs as compared to their counterparts in India, BD, Sri Lanka , Nepal and Bhutan.
He pointed out that the dilapidated condition of the farm to market roads flew in the face of the role model projection of good governance in Punjab. He called for an end to the inter-provincial movement of wheat, which, according to him, was hurting the interests of Punjab farmers and would benefit only the hoarders and the middle men.