Rising petroleum prices would affect Pakistan's agriculture sector as farmers depend on fuel to operate their tube-wells to get irrigation water the prime requirement for the growth of crops.

'Due to inadequate canal system, farmers are dependent on electric and diesel run tube-wells for irrigation but price escalation of oil would have negative impact on their production,' the Secretary General, Kisan Bachao Tehreek, Ahmed Noor Advocate told APP.

FARMERS in the northern districts are facing great troubles to irrigate the last moment boro fields before harvesting due to frequent power outages. Thousands of power-run pumps remain inoperative in most of the time in a day for the frequent load-shedding. The dream of bumper production of boro paddy will be shattered if the situation of power outages is not improved immediately, the farmers said.

An acute shortage of irrigation water, which is also a major source of drinking water for over 1.2 million people of the coastal area, has on the one hand done irreparable harm to standing crops, fish

Crop cultivation on 8,000 acres of land are hampering due to lack of irrigation as power lines of 130 deep tube wells remained disconnected at different parts in Baghmara upazila.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) will provide $450 million for 'Punjab Irrigated Agricultural Development Sector Project (PIADSP)' from its Ordinary Capital Resources and Asian Development Fund durin

GK (Ganges-Kobadak) project yesterday started supplying irrigation water to five southwestern districts for Irri-Boro cultivation.

The annual district credit plan projected finance to crop loans to the tune of Rs 1,014.60 crore for 2008-09.

The agriculture department organised a training programme for farmers regarding conservation of irrigation water and lining of watercourses at Thekratho, Sukkur district.

An additional 2.88 million acre feet (MAF) water will be available for irrigation after the completion of Mangla Dam Raising Project.