LARKANA: Larkana Chamber of Agriculture (LCA) has demanded the provision of latest imported agricultural machinery to poor tillers and growers of paddy and other crops in Sindh. The chamber requested to the provincial government to provide tillers and growers small handy harvester, small auto loaders, imported sheds, handy motor sprayers, hydraulic trollies, and implements to increase per acre yield. In a press statement issued here on Sunday, LCA president Sirajul Oliya Rashdi said that the 5-year agriculture growth project started with the cooperation of World Bank in Sindh has not benefited any farmer or landlord. He said under the said project rice and other crops’ growers were to be provided with latest agricultural equipment on 50% and 30% discount but despite the passage of two years no farmer or small grower has so far received any machinery, training, or any foreign study tour. He said that in high level government meetings only millers and industrialists are called, and even the focal person for the said project was selected from the millers group instead of growers which exposes the government’s seriousness about the project. “During last two years, six project directors have been transferred and posted allegedly due to corruption and commission,” said Rashdi, adding that outdated machinery instead of modern equipment is being supplied to the farmers, which should be probed. He said that an advertisement was floated in the newspapers for supply of various machinery costing millions of rupees, which will only be used by the millers and not by the poor needy growers. Rashdi said during a meeting with Sindh Agriculture Minister on October 3rd they raised concerns against the tender and demanded that tillers should be supplied imported small latest machinery. “But the officers said that locally manufactured equipment could only be procured under the agreement. It will not support the end users. LCA demands that procurement may be made according to the approved PC-1,” said Rashdi, adding that any action beyond that would justify our concern that the whole project has been launched to benefit large landlords only.