ISLAMABAD, Nov 28 (APP): The Barani Agricultural Research Institute (BARI) Chakwal will distribute 30,000 high-value fruit plants across the Potohar region under a provincial initiative aimed at transforming the area’s rain-fed farming system, a senior official said.
Director BARI Dr. Nadeem Ahmed told Wealth Pakistan that the plants will be provided over three years as part of the Agriculture Transformation in Potohar Project recently approved by the Punjab government. He said the effort is designed to help small farmers shift towards high-value crops that can generate greater income from limited landholdings.
“The government has approved the Agriculture Transformation in Potohar Project, and BARI has been assigned early-generation groundnut seed production,” he said, adding that the institute will also lead the fruit development component.
He said the institute plans to distribute 30,000 plants of blackberry, peach, grapes, nectarine and fig across the region. These varieties are considered well-suited to Potohar’s ecological conditions and can improve farmers’ earnings.
In addition, the institute is testing blueberry and raspberry for possible introduction and supporting large-scale olive cultivation on more than 3,000 acres. The project includes the development of nursery tunnels and related infrastructure, enabling BARI to expand citrus plant production. The institute will also provide 15,000 citrus plants to farmers through 25 model farms over three years.
Dr. Nadeem said BARI will produce and distribute 25,000 kilograms of basic and pre-basic groundnut seed to address chronic shortages that have limited yields for small farmers in the region. After multiplication, the seed will be supplied to the wider farming community.
BARI Chakwal operates six sub-stations across Potohar, focusing on both horticulture and field crops. Facilities at Murree and Soan Valley are working on avocado, pecan, hazelnut, apple, peach and grapes, while stations at Fateh Jang and Attock are developing improved varieties of wheat, groundnut and pulses.
The Punjab Barani Tract covers all of Attock, Rawalpindi, Jhelum and Chakwal districts and parts of Sialkot, Narowal, Gujrat, Khushab, Mianwali, Jhang, Bhakkar, Layyah, D.G. Khan and Rajanpur districts.
The region is home to around 31.5 million people, or 29 percent of Punjab’s population, spread across diverse ecological zones ranging from the Murree-Kahuta uplands and Potohar plateau to the Salt Range and Thal desert.
Officials believe that long-term investment in agriculture could allow these communities to play a greater role in economic development.