Agricultural products of Sindh
by MairaS on October 31, 2009
in Agriculture in Pakistan
Pakistan depends largely on agriculture for its economic development. A contribution of 30% to the GDP (Gross Domestic Production) makes Sindh the 2nd largest supplier of agricultural products. In the province of Sindh only 40% of the land can be cultivated. The rest comprises of the rugged and barren Kirthar Range and the sandy Thar Desert.
The climate of Sindh is sub-tropical. It experiences long summer spells with temperature shooting up to more than 45oC during May to August. Winters are cold with a minimum of 2oC during January- December. Rainfall is unpredictable and occurs mostly during July and August. With erratic rainfalls the only reliable source of water is the River Indus. Three barrages namely Guddu, Sukkur and Kotri are constructed over the Indus to supply water for irrigation.
Major areas where crops are cultivated are Khairpur, Nausharo Faroz, Nawabshah, Mirpur Khas, Larkana and Sukkur.
The fertile lands of the Lower Indus Plains along with the temperature are ideally suited for crops like wheat, rice, cotton and sugar cane. Sindh produces 35% of rice, 28% of sugar cane, 20% of cotton and 12% of wheat of the total production. Apart from these cash crops, fruits are also grown in the orchards of Sindh. Mangoes, bananas, dates, guavas and citrus fruit trees are grown here.
Sindh is especially known for its Sindhri Mangoes which are exported abroad as well. Sindh is also the largest chilies producer of the country. The red hot variety grown here is very much in demand across the globe.
A variety of flowers are grown for commercial scale for extracting essential oils and for oil-seeds.
The government of Pakistan has set up the Sindh Agricultural Department which provides assistance and guidance to the farmers.