Welcome Rohri City! Agriculture Page

Agriculture is the mainstay of the Province of Sindh. With its varying climatic conditions and very scanty rainfall, but good soil, man has been practicing agriculture in Sindh since time immemorial, helped by the Indus, one of he longest rivers in the world.

Details of the major crops and yields for 1993-4 in Sukkur district are listed below:

Group	Area in Hectares	Production in M Ton	Yield Per Hectare in Kgs
Rice	8265	17293	4043
Wheat	132829	277029	2086
Juwar (Great Millet)	13613	8350	613
Bajra (Spiked Millet)	744	391	526
Maize	522	270	517
Grain	10909	8955	775
Barley	312	148	474
Rapeseed & Mustard	9112	5584	613
Sesame	38	15	1250
Sugarcane	12139	537541	44.28
Cotton	110172	311748	481
Tobacco	2	3	1500

Most of the agricultural land in Sukkur District is defined as arable irrigated land, with small patches of unused land under rough grazing. Prior to 1972 irrigation water was supplied only in the Kharif season; thereafter, however, the canals of the Guddu Barrage command area were made perennial. This led to increasing salinity and water logging, to the extent that now some 70 per cent of cultivable land is affected.

The land reforms of 1972 included the fixing of sixteen acres as the minimum subsistence holding in Sindh. Table 4.5 shows how those sixteen acres could yield a basic living wage. Cotton, wheat, mustard, sugar cane, and bar seem are the main crops grown on the left bank of the Indus, while the bar seem. Cotton, sugar cane, and oilseed are deemed industrial crops, the rest commercial.
Horticulture plays a relatively small role in the area. The main crops of the Kharif season are mango, date palm, and banana, while those of Rabi are oranges and lemons. The average yield per acre of date palm is seventy-nine maunds (one maund= 40 Kgs) of dry dates.
The agro-industries which arise from the predominant crops include cotton-ginning, biscuit making, oilseed processing, date processing, and molasses and sugar making by traditional and modern methods.

The overall cropping intensity in the country is 137 per cent. It varies from 159 per cent in farms of less than five acres, to 140 per cent in farms of five to under twenty five acres, and 123 per cent in farms of twenty-five acres and above in size. The intensity of cropping is around 135 per cent on owner-operated and owner-cum-tenant-operated farms, but it rises to 141 per cent on tenant-operated farms.
The intensity of cropping in District Sukkur is show in Table 4.7. The figures are taken from the Pakistan Census, Agriculture, 1990 –Province Report- Sindh prepared by the Economic Affairs and Statistics Division, Agricultural Census Organization (pp.121, 127,132,137,143).

This was introduced in 1973 by the Federal Government to make it easier for farmers to obtain agricultural credit from lending institutions. The farmer is required to buy a set of two passbooks (one red, one green) from the Post Office and have the particular concerning his land endorsed by the Revenue Department, after which he is eligible for a loan of up to 60 per cent of the value of his land. The Revenue Department retains the red book and updates it according to information supplied by the lender (generally a bank); the green book is retained by the bank as a guarantee for the loan.
By 1994, 9,861 Passbooks had been issued, out of a total eligibility of 25,079. Despite a mark-up rate of 14 per cent there had been no defaulting.

Area, production, and yield of vegetables
Group	Area in Hectares	Production in M Ton	Yield Per Hectare in Kgs
Field Vetch	28	70	2500
Lady finger	496	3006	6060
Tinda	190	1324	6968
Brinjal	267	2008	7521
Bitter Gourd	37	168	4541
Bottle Gourd	20	118	5900
Luffa	28	203	7250
Turnips	281	3800	13523
Onion	1934	22682	11728
Carrot	40	490	12250
Tomato	119	834	7008
Cauliflower	14	138	9857
Cabbage	197	2493	12655
Potato	59	535	9068
Sweet Potato	07	25	3571
Radish	94	753	8011
Peas	09	34	3778
Garden Peas	08	17	2125
Fenugreek	18	32	1778
Other Vegetables Rabi	381	1037	2722
Kharif	29	219	7552

Group	Area in Hectares	Production in M.Tons	Yield per Hectares in Kgs
Banana	67	234	3453
Date palm	2778	12632	4547
Guava	10	New Plantation	4547
Mango	413	2958	7228
Orange	28	356	12714
Lemon	70	228	3257
Grape	8	34	4250
Mossambi	9	30	3333
Kino	7	27	2857
Ber Berry	6	12	2000
Other Fruits (Rabi)	35	180	1543

Autumn crops-Kharif

1. Saryoon (Rice)
2. Jowar (Great Millet)
3. Bajri (Bulrush Millet)
4. Makki (Maiz)
5. Rahan (Cowpeas)
6. Tir (Sesaum)
7. Kapah (Cotton)
8. Kamand (Sugarcane)
9. Gidro (Melons)

Spring crops-Rabi

1. Kanak (Wheat)
2. Jau (Barley)
3. Channa (Gram)
4. Matar (Peas)
5. Toria (Rape)
6. Gogroo (Turnip)

Fruit

1. Date
2. Banana
3. Lemon
4. Mango

Agriculture calendar

The agriculture year commences on the day of the first full Moon in Chet. That day and the eight following days (naurata) are lucky days.

The months of the years are known by the following names;
CHET Middle of March to Middle of April
VESAKH Middle of April to Middle of May
JETH Middle of May to Middle of June
AKHAR Middle of June to Middle of July
SAWAN Middle of July to Middle of August
BADO Middle of August to Middle of Sept
ASSU Middle of September to Middle of Oct
KATI Middle of October to Middle of Nov.
NAHRI Middle of November to Middle of Dec.
POH Middle of December to Middle of Jan.
MANGH Middle of January to Middle of February
PHAGUN Middle of February to Middle of March

Group	Area in Hectares	Production in M Ton	Yield Per Hectare in Kgs
Mash (Kharif)	302	128	424
Masoor (Lentil)	953	475	498
Matter (ChickenVetch)	1521	750	493
Mung (Green Gram)	303	128	422
Other Rabi	356	169	475

Group	Area in Hectares	Production in M. Tons	Yield per Hectare in Kgs
Chillies Rabi	374	647	1730
Chillies Kharif	607	1005	1656
Ginger	24	850	354
Garlic	725	4418	6094
Fennel	2	1	500
Coriander	332	139	419
Spearmint	9	5	556
Turmeric	4	2	500
Others	39	20	513