Punjab has obtained export orders over 500,000 tonnes of potatoes.

Punjab has secured export orders over 500,000 tonnes of potatoes, a development credited to Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif’s initiatives to enhance the province’s agricultural sector and broaden international market access.

The declaration occurred during a high-level meeting led by the Chief Minister, where crucial decisions were reached to modernize agriculture and improve farmers’ incomes through structural reforms and targeted support initiatives.

Maryam Nawaz sanctioned the incorporation of agricultural interns into the “Apna Khet, Apna Rozgar” (My Farm, My Livelihood) initiative, increasing their monthly compensation to Rs70,000. The initiative seeks to empower young graduates and foster innovation within the agricultural sector.

The Punjab government has initiated a rooftop hydroponics initiative, allowing the production of 280 to 350 plants on a two-marla rooftop. The initiative is anticipated to substantially enhance vegetable production, heralding what officials characterize as a new epoch of food security in the province, with output likely to rise by as much as 32 times under regulated systems.

The meeting sanctioned the conversion of seven million acres of land in South Punjab’s Thal region under the “Transformation of Agriculture in Thal” project to render uncultivated land productive.

In the fourth phase of the CM Green Tractor Programme, high-horsepower tractors will be subsidized by Rs1.5 million, and subsidies for lower-horsepower tractors have been raised to between Rs500,000 and Rs700,000.

Furthermore, Punjab will implement a “On-Farm Rain Harvesting” initiative, which encompasses the establishment of groundwater recharge wells to redirect rainwater into aquifers. A subsidy of Rs500,000 would be allocated for 1,000 recharge wells in Lahore, Gujranwala, and Gujrat, while 70 percent subsidies will be available for 1,000 rain-harvesting ponds.

Model Agriculture Malls in Multan, Sahiwal, Bahawalpur, and Sargodha announced record sales of Rs462 million, accompanied by the introduction of home delivery services within a 50-kilometre radius. The Agriculture Department will acquire 50 new bulldozers to facilitate land development initiatives.

Under the “Apna Khet, Apna Rozgar” initiative, farmers will obtain financial support of Rs50,000 per acre. Officials indicated that the wheat cultivation objective of 16.5 million acres has been met, with an anticipated yield of 22.30 million metric tonnes this season.

Provincial authorities conveyed assurance that the integrated measures will bolster food security, augment export potential, and promote rural prosperity throughout Punjab.