ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s top economic decision-making body for large-scale provincial projects approved a major solarization scheme for agricultural tube wells on Tuesday to facilitate the country’s farming community to ensure food security by endorsing Rs377 billion.
The decision was taken in a meeting of the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) that was chaired by finance minister Ishaq Dar and was attended by several senior government functionaries.
The project is expected to increase agricultural productivity in Pakistan that has witnessed the adverse impact of climate change in recent years.
“The ECNEC considered and approved a Project of Ministry of National Food Security & Research titled ‘Prime Minister’s National Programme for Solarization of Agriculture Tube wells’ in Punjab, Sindh, [Khyber Pakhtunkhwa], and Baluchistan at a cost of Rs. 377,236.275 million with a gestation period of three years,” said the finance division in an official statement issued after the meeting.
It added the authorities would spend Rs90 billion under the project in the ongoing financial year to provide clean and green energy by converting the existing 100,000 tube wells to solar system.
The project will be executed by the Ministry of National Food Security through the Federal Water Management Cell (FWMC) and Provincial Departments of Agriculture.
ECNEC also approved other provincial schemes, including Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Rural Investment and Industrial Support Project and Sindh Solar Energy Project.
