Punjab Sets 16.5 Million Acre Wheat Cultivation Target for Current Season

RAWALPINDI: (News Desk) – Punjab Agriculture Minister Syed Ashiq Hussain Kirmani has announced that the provincial government has proposed a wheat support price of Rs4,500 per maund for the current season, as part of a special campaign to expand wheat cultivation across the province.

He made these remarks while chairing a high-level meeting at the Commissioner’s Office in Rawalpindi on October 31, 2026, to review preparations for the upcoming wheat cultivation season and assess progress towards achieving the prescribed targets.

The meeting was attended by Punjab Agriculture Secretary Shakeel Ahmad Mian, MPAs Malik Iftikhar Ahmed and Malik Aitbar Khan, deputy commissioners of Rawalpindi Division, senior agriculture department officials, farmers and other relevant stakeholders.

Addressing the participants, Kirmani said the provincial government had set a wheat cultivation target of 16.5 million acres across Punjab, including 1.6 million acres in Rawalpindi Division. He added that special responsibilities had been assigned to field staff to ensure cultivation exceeded the prescribed targets.

The minister emphasised that wheat production was essential for national food security, adding that government initiatives had made wheat cultivation a profitable activity for farmers.

He said the government was providing a subsidy of Rs320 million to encourage the use of certified wheat seeds. Under the initiative, certified seed supplied by the Punjab Seed Corporation was being offered at Rs7,000 per bag after a subsidy of Rs800 per bag.

Kirmani further announced that an additional interest-free loan facility worth Rs17 billion was being introduced to support DAP fertiliser purchases for approximately five million acres.

He added that farmers were also receiving an additional interest-free loan of Rs3,500 per acre through the Kissan Card programme, benefiting around one million farmers.

Punjab Agriculture Secretary Shakeel Ahmad Mian informed the meeting that implementation of the Agriculture Transformation Plan was underway in the Potohar region.

He said the wheat promotion campaign was being regularly monitored through agriculture department field formations, stressing that active cooperation from divisional and district administrations was essential to achieving the cultivation targets.

The meeting reviewed measures to encourage farmers to increase wheat-growing areas and ensure the availability of quality seeds and agricultural inputs during the current season.