Islamabad. For the first time in Pakistan, the complete picture of the agricultural sector has been revealed through the digital agriculture census.
According to the report released by the Bureau of Statistics, 17,000 big landowners have 100 acres or more of land. They occupy a total of 3,650,000 acres of land, which is 6% of the country’s agricultural land.
A clear increase has been seen in the number of agricultural farms. In 2010, there were 82 lakh farms, which have now increased to 11.7 million farms. But surprisingly, the average area of each farm has come down from 6.4 acres to 5.1 acres.
Punjab is at the forefront of traditional agricultural activities, with 5.05 million farms spread across 3.1 crore acres. Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Balochistan are also contributing according to their own capacity, but the disparity in land productivity is significant.
An important aspect of this census is the reduction in barren lands. In 2010, there were 84 lakh acres of rain-fed land, which is now only 49 lakh acres. This is not only an environmental risk. But it also reflects the weaknesses of the irrigation system.
Livestock also play an important role in the agricultural sector. The report says there are more than 250 million livestock in Pakistan, including cows, buffalo, goats, sheep, camels, horses, mules, and donkeys. Punjab, as per tradition, is also at the forefront in this field.
The total number of livestock in Pakistan is estimated at 251 million 251 million. of which cows are 5.58 crore, buffaloes: 4.77 crore, and goats: 9.58 crore. Sheep: 4.45 crore, Camels: 15 lakh, Horses: 5.53 lakh, Mules: 2.96 lakh, Donkeys: 49 lakh. Agricultural production has declined.
Addressing the inaugural ceremony of the Agriculture Census, Federal Minister Ahsan Iqbal has said that if Pakistan has to build a strong economy, it will have to take serious steps towards agricultural reforms and corporate farming.
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