Essay : [Food Problems in Pakistan]
English Essay on "Food Problems in Pakistan"Food Problems in Pakistan
Points Pakistan – an agricultural country – Import of food grain – Role of wealthy land lords – Measures to improve cultivation – Conclusion
Pakistan is an agricultural country. Inspite of that we are not self sufficient in food production. It is only common that with so large a part of the population depending on agriculture and so large a proportion of the total income of the country deriving from agriculture, there can be no basic improvement in the standard of living of agriculture stagnates.
It is ironic that an agricultural country like Pakistan has been importing basic food items. During the current fiscal year Pakistan has imported food worth over $2.3 billion, including $600 million in wheat. The agriculture minister told a press conference in Islamabad on April 8 1997 that upto 500 tons of wheat would arrive, mostly from the United States, by the end of April. Some of the shortages have been explained by the fact that large quantities of wheat and flour were being smuggled to neighboring India and Afghanistan. The government has recently raised the procurement price by 30 percent.
What can Pakistan do to improve agricultural productivity The answer lies in a more efficient use of scare resources like land and water. In order to promote such an efficient use of land and water the government will have to change the social structure. Wealthy landowners dominate the agricultural sector and they also dominate the federal and provincial parliaments. The World Bank has pointed out several times that large landowners are less productive than small holders.
The area of land under cultivation in Pakistan is 42 million acres. From the produce of this land we have to provide food for man and food for domestic animals and to grow crops to provide fibre. The fertility of the agricultural land is deteriorating steadily. The soil is not naturally poor but has become poor on account of unscientific handling of agriculture.(4essay.blogspot.com) The problems of erosion, salinity and water logging are also responsible for the low productivity in our country. Unless the food problem is solved the country’s overall progress will be retarted.
It may be emphasized that future food policy must aim at a balanced diet. The masses of the people must realise that food does not mean only cereals rice or wheat, but also a lot of other important materials invariably necessary for good health.
Pakistan is an agricultural country. Inspite of that we are not self sufficient in food production. It is only common that with so large a part of the population depending on agriculture and so large a proportion of the total income of the country deriving from agriculture, there can be no basic improvement in the standard of living of agriculture stagnates.
It is ironic that an agricultural country like Pakistan has been importing basic food items. During the current fiscal year Pakistan has imported food worth over $2.3 billion, including $600 million in wheat. The agriculture minister told a press conference in Islamabad on April 8 1997 that upto 500 tons of wheat would arrive, mostly from the United States, by the end of April. Some of the shortages have been explained by the fact that large quantities of wheat and flour were being smuggled to neighboring India and Afghanistan. The government has recently raised the procurement price by 30 percent.
What can Pakistan do to improve agricultural productivity The answer lies in a more efficient use of scare resources like land and water. In order to promote such an efficient use of land and water the government will have to change the social structure. Wealthy landowners dominate the agricultural sector and they also dominate the federal and provincial parliaments. The World Bank has pointed out several times that large landowners are less productive than small holders.
The area of land under cultivation in Pakistan is 42 million acres. From the produce of this land we have to provide food for man and food for domestic animals and to grow crops to provide fibre. The fertility of the agricultural land is deteriorating steadily. The soil is not naturally poor but has become poor on account of unscientific handling of agriculture.(4essay.blogspot.com) The problems of erosion, salinity and water logging are also responsible for the low productivity in our country. Unless the food problem is solved the country’s overall progress will be retarted.
It may be emphasized that future food policy must aim at a balanced diet. The masses of the people must realise that food does not mean only cereals rice or wheat, but also a lot of other important materials invariably necessary for good health.
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