Sindh Wheat Boycott: Farmers Protest Farm Tax
Sindh Farmers Vow Boycott over Agricultural Income Tax, Declining Cotton Yields
Karachi, July 23, 2025 – Farmers in Sindh are preparing for a significant protest against the newly imposed 45% agricultural income tax, which thay have deemed “unconstitutional, illegal, and unethical.” The Sindh Chamber of agriculture (SCA) has called for a complete boycott of wheat cultivation for the 2025-26 season, urging farmers to pivot to alternative crops like mustard, nigella, and sunflower due to unremunerative prices for their current produce.
Farmers declare Tax Unjust, Threaten Mass Arrests
The decision was formalized at a meeting chaired by SCA patron-in-chief Dr. Syed Nadeem Qamar. The chamber rejected the tax, alleging it was imposed under directives from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Farmers present argued that the tax is unjustified given the prevailing low prices for their produce, which often fail to cover production costs.
“We are ready to face imprisonment, but will not pay the agricultural income tax,” declared farmers’ leaders at the meeting.They are demanding exemptions similar to those granted to industrialists and have warned that if the government resorts to arrests for non-compliance, millions of other farmers will court arrest in solidarity.
Wheat Boycott and Shift to Alternative Crops
the SCA has instructed farmers to boycott wheat cultivation for the upcoming 2025-26 season, citing a lack of adequate support prices. This move is expected to significantly impact the region’s agricultural landscape, wiht farmers vowing to cultivate oilseeds such as mustard, nigella (kalonji), and sunflower instead. This strategic shift is driven by the inability to recover production costs due to “very low wheat prices,” marking the year as a “boycott year” for wheat.
Cotton production Plummets Amidst Price Discrepancies
Adding to the farmers’ grievances is a stark 40% decline in cotton production, with estimates suggesting the yield will not surpass four million bales. Farmers are receiving a mere Rs6,500 per maund for cotton, a significant shortfall from the Sindh agriculture minister’s promised Rs11,000 per maund, a promise that has yet to materialize.
The SCA is demanding the withdrawal of the 18% local tax on cotton and advocating for a 25% tax on imported cotton. This policy shift aims to discourage imports and bolster local production.
Rising Input Costs Cripple Agricultural Sector
The chamber also expressed grave concern over the escalating cost of agricultural inputs. Recent weeks have seen a Rs22 per liter increase in diesel prices and a Rs600 per bag rise in DAP fertilizer. These skyrocketing costs, coupled with unremunerative prices for produce, are described as “crippling farmers” and indicative of a “deliberate destruction of the agricultural sector.”
The SCA has issued an urgent demand for the immediate rollback of increased prices for diesel, fertilizers, seeds, pesticides, and other essential agricultural inputs.
Call for Benazir Hari Card Registration and Subsidy Extension
In a bid to support farmers, the chamber urged them to register for the Benazir Hari Card by contacting their respective mukhtiarkars and relevant officials.Furthermore, the SCA has requested that the existing Rs10,000 per acre subsidy for sunflower and canola crops be extended to mustard and rapeseed crops as well.
the meeting was attended by Sindh Irrigation and Drainage Authority Chairman Kabool Khatian, General Secretary Zahid Bhurgari, Nabi Bux sathi, Shahnawaz Khan Jamali, Asghar Khan Nonari, Murad Ali Khan Nizamani, Sikander Ali Sariwal, Bilal Khan laghari, and Abdul Karim Talpur, among others.