ACCORDING TO the recently launched Economic Survey 2011-12, Pakistan missed the targets of agriculture growth as this sector registered a growth of 3.13 per cent against the target of 3.4 per cent. The Survey cited the negative growth of wheat and minor crops to this situation. This year, wheat contributed 12.5 per cent to the value added to agriculture and 2.6 per cent to GDP. The production of 23.5 million tons is estimated during 2011-12. The hectare yield per in 2011-12 showed a negative growth of 4.2 per cent as compared 11 per cent growth last year. Similarly, the production of other minor crops was not different that showed a decline of 1.26 per cent. Minor crops contributed 10.1 per cent value addition in agriculture and exhibited a negative growth of 1.3 per cent this year against 2.7 per cent growth of 2011. The major crops including cotton, sugarcane and rice witnessed growth in production of 18.6 per cent, 4.9 percent and 27.7 per cent respectively. Cotton accounted for 7.8 per cent of value added in agriculture and 1.6 per cent of GDP. Sugarcane production for the year 2011-12 is estimated at 58.0 million tons, in contrast to the last years production of 55.3 million tons. This shows an increase of 4.9 per cent over the production of last year. However, the yield per hectare if compared with last year, posted a negative growth. The declining trends in the agriculture sector must be something that is quite enough to break the slumber of the authorities concerned as Pakistan, being an agriculture state, desperately needs to be amongst the high farm producing countries. Listing out the factors behind this negative situation, the conventional methods of agriculture mechanisms are being spelt as the major drawback as so far over 95 per cent farmers farm activities are still disorganized or lacking modern techniques or approach that are considered guarantee to a significant increase in farm production in the developed states. Though at the same time natural resources like water or soil quality do contribute to this persisting negative farm growth, yet the modern research has now more or less overcome these factors to a major extent. Food insecurity is haunting Pakistan with depleting resources like water, degrading soil quality as well as environment and seeds quality in addition to regular use of unsubscribed pesticides. Here comes the major role on the part of the government that needs to come up with serious initiatives to not only engage agriculture experts for policy formation but also ensure that modern research methods of the successful agriculture states are implemented effectively. Otherwise, next year the situation would not be different from that we faced during the year 2011-12.

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