Meeting reviews progress on agriculture sector uplift schemes

PESHAWAR, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th May, 2026) Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Minister for Law, Human Rights and Parliamentary Affairs Aftab Alam chaired an important meeting in Peshawar on Wednesday to review the progress of ongoing agricultural sector development projects in District Kohat, including the merged areas.

The meeting was attended by the Director General Soil & Water Conservation, Director General Agriculture Extension, Director General Agriculture Engineering, Project Director KDDP Kohat, along with other relevant officials and officers.

The meeting held detailed discussions on ongoing agricultural development projects in Kohat and the merged areas, promotion of agriculture in rain-fed regions, modern agricultural technology, farm mechanization, solarization, horticulture, olive cultivation, off-season farming, and facilities being provided to farmers.

Addressing the meeting, Minister for Law Aftab Alam said that the mountainous areas of Kohat possess immense potential for soil conservation and that the objectives of development in the agricultural sector can only be achieved through equitable distribution of resources.

He directed the relevant departments to ensure transparency, effective monitoring, and timely completion of development projects.

Special attention was given to solarization projects in the agricultural sector during the meeting. Officials of the Agriculture Department informed the participants that various initiatives were underway to shift agricultural tube wells and irrigation systems to solar energy in order to relieve farmers from the burden of expensive fuel and electricity costs.

The officials stated that solarization would not only significantly reduce agricultural expenses but would also improve irrigation systems in remote and electricity-deprived areas.

Minister Aftab Alam said that in the context of the current energy crisis and rising agricultural costs, solarization had become the need of the hour.

He remarked that solar-powered tube wells, water pumps, and modern irrigation systems would prove to be revolutionary facilities for farmers, leading to increased agricultural productivity and efficient water usage.

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He directed the concerned authorities to ensure transparency, merit, and provision of quality equipment in solarization projects so that the farming community could truly benefit from government initiatives.

He emphasized that solarization could become a game changer for agricultural development, particularly in rain-fed and underdeveloped areas.

Agriculture Department officials further briefed the meeting that projects related to vertical net farming, off-season farming, bamboo fruits production, especially guava production, installation of agricultural machinery, and provision of agricultural chemicals were underway.

The Minister for Law declared transparency in the distribution mechanism of these inputs as essential and directed that all facilities should be provided to farmers strictly on merit and according to need.

The meeting was also briefed on tele-farming initiatives and systems for timely dissemination of information to farmers, while details regarding beneficiaries’ lists and related records were also presented.

Aftab Alam stated that comprehensive measures were necessary to protect the valuable agricultural machinery allocated under farm mechanization projects from becoming dilapidated, in order to ensure effective utilization of government resources.

Officials further informed the meeting that under wild olive farming, 12,000 olive plants had been cultivated successfully, yielding up to 21 kilograms per plant.

On this occasion, the Minister for Law observed that the Forest Department had achieved an 80 percent success rate in its projects, whereas the Agriculture Department’s success rate stood at 30 percent, which still had considerable room for improvement.

He declared monitoring an essential component for the effective completion and transparent implementation of projects and stated that he himself would visit various areas to review the progress of these projects.