- Accuses PTI chief of creating hurdles in revival of IMF programme
- Chairs meeting to review progress on agriculture reforms, cotton cultivation
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday said that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf chairman Imran Khan was out to create hurdles in the revival of the International Monetary Fund’s porgramme which was reached during the previous tenure of PTI’s government.
“The creation of chaos on roads and anarchy is part and parcel of Imran Niazi’s agenda, aims at fanning the fire of instability in the country”, the prime minister said in a short statement shared by PM Office Media Wing on Saturday.
“The timid person did not allow the courts to search him as he is guilty,” he added.
He said Imran Khan did not want the poor people of the country to be lifted from the issues of price inflation and economic pressure nor desired the steering of national resources.
“Imran Khan’s evasion from courts amounts to the height of cowardice,” the prime minister observed. First, he (Imran) left the IMF programme and now resisting the courts, he said, adding he (IK) had also deviated from his promises and ideals.
On the other hand, the prime minister said, Nawaz Sharif and Pakistan Mulsim League-N faced the worst kind of vengeance at the hands of NAB-Niazi connivance in the past.
“We have faced the courts and laws in the trumped-up charges framed against our family members including sons, daughters and sisters,” he added.
The leadership of PML-N endured the ordeals of death cells and braved the unfounded cases of heroin, he added.
‘Enhanced agri production to help attain food autarky’
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif underlined the need for enhancing agriculture production to attain food autarky and thus save the country from different economic issues.
He also directed for effective resolution of the issues by improving the supply of food grains and food chain to the public through a comprehensive mechanism.
The prime minister chaired a meeting to review progress on the ongoing reforms of the Agriculture Task Force and the upcoming cultivation of cotton, PM Office Media Wing said in a press release.
During the meeting, the prime minister stressed upon early implementation of the agriculture reforms for increasing the agri-yield, besides making the federal and provincial agriculture research institutions more efficient.
He regretted that being an agricultural country, Pakistan had been importing agricultural commodities. The meeting was attended by Minister for National Food Security Tariq Bashir Cheema, Minister for Trade Syed Naveed Qamar, PM’s Advisor Ahad Cheema, PM’s Special Assistant Jehanzaib Khan, Punjab Chief Minister Syed Mohsin Naqvi and other relevant federal and provincial authorities.
وزیرِ اعظم شہباز شریف کی زیر صدارت زرعی ٹاسک فورس کی طرف سے جاری اصلاحات کے حوالے سے جائزہ اجلاس،
حکومت کی طرف سے زرعی پیداوار کو بڑھانے کے لئے شروع کی جانے والی اصلاحات پر کام جلد از جلد مکمل کیا جائے گا۔ pic.twitter.com/CzcUFdQ8IH— Government of Pakistan (@GovtofPakistan) March 11, 2023
For the production of cotton, the prime minister assigned the task of making it a profit earning produce by ensuring profit-based income to the cotton growers. He also directed for a crackdown on sellers of fake pesticides with iron hands, besides initiating strict legal proceedings against the people involved in its sale.
He also asked for ensuring the provision of quality seeds to the farmers through a transparent and effective seed certification process. The meeting was briefed about the projected overall production of cotton and the proposals for the support price.
The prime minister directed for implementation of immediate and long terms measures for increasing cotton production per acre. The support price should be devised by keeping in view the ratio, per acre cost and maximum profit to the farmers, he added.
The prime minister was also briefed about the functioning of the research entities and the seed certification mechanism. The prime minister directed for a transparent and effective certification process and urged the provinces to play their role in this regard.
