Wheat production may drop by half, warns SCA

SINDH, Nov 05 (PTI): The acute water shortage may drop the wheat cultivation by half in the upcoming winter sowing season in Sindh.

The Sindh Chamber of Agriculture (SCA), a farmers' lobbying group, expressed this fear on Sunday underpinning its projection on more than 50 per cent water shortage in Rohri and Nara canals.

"This may create a food security problem in Pakistan," said SCA General Secretary Zahid Bhurgari, adding that a large number of farmers will also encounter financial hardships due to low cultivation.

The SCA office bearers and members at the meeting also raised the issue of the financial crisis being faced by the growers of onion and tomato crops as imports of the two crops are still continuing. "The onion and tomato farmers are unable to even recover money which they spent to grow these crops," Bhurgari said.