"From Tanks to Tractors: Pakistan's Army Transforms for Food Security, Sparking Concerns Over Military Dominance"

In a bid to enhance food security, the Pakistani military is transitioning from tanks to tractors by acquiring extensive parcels of government-owned land. However, this initiative is triggering concerns about the military's ever-present influence in a nation grappling with economic turmoil.

This undertaking, occurring two decades after a deadly uprising sparked by pay disputes at a military-run farm, coincides with Pakistan's struggle with depleting foreign currency reserves that hinder its capacity to import essential food and commodities. Protests have erupted due to surging electricity bills related to the terms of an International Monetary Fund bailout.

 

Launched earlier this year through a collaborative effort between civil and military entities, the new food security plan seeks to bolster agricultural production on state land leased to army-run farms. Advocates assert that this will result in higher crop yields and water conservation. However, the blueprint faces legal challenges and criticism for potentially diverting profits to a military ill-suited for a task that could benefit some of Pakistan's 25 million rural landless individuals.

 

While land is frequently allocated to active and retired military personnel for private use, the latest transfer could potentially establish the Pakistani military as the country's largest landowner, according to critics.

 

An environmental lawyer, representing the Public Interest Law Association of Pakistan in challenging the land transfer, remarked, "The role of the army is to defend against external threats and assist the civilian government when requested, nothing more, nothing less."

 

Numerous specifics of the plan remain unclear, including the timeline for full farm operation. On paper, the army aims to acquire up to 1 million acres of land in Punjab province, an area approximately 5,500 times the size of Beijing's Forbidden City or nearly three times the size of Delhi. Most of this land is situated in the Cholistan Desert, an arid region susceptible to water shortages. Additionally, around 110,000 acres of land in adjacent districts are slated for transfer.

 

Although the Lahore High Court initially halted the army's land transfer, this ruling was later overturned by another bench in July.

 

The military has been granted leases for up to 30 years to cultivate cash crops like wheat, cotton, sugar cane, as well as vegetables and fruits. Leaked government documents suggest that 20% of any profit will be allocated for agricultural research and development, with the remainder divided equally between the army and the state government.

 

Fongrow, a subsidiary of an army conglomerate established to provide employment for retired military personnel, has already developed a 2,250-acre corporate farm in Punjab, specializing in cotton and corn. Their website claims a remarkable 135% increase in average crop yields.

 

However, it remains uncertain whether any of the land earmarked for transfer is currently under cultivation or controlled by small landowners. Converting a desert into fertile agricultural land presents another unanswered challenge.

 

"Typically, army officers have limited farming knowledge," remarked one expert. "There are numerous agricultural graduates without jobs who possess the necessary skills to handle this task."

 

Past experiences with army-operated farms have also raised eyebrows. The military has managed farms inherited from the British colonial era for decades. In 2000, a revolt erupted when the army attempted to replace a crop-sharing system with cash payments at a vast site in Punjab. It was revealed that the military's land lease had expired almost 70 years earlier, leading to a crackdown that resulted in numerous arrests and the deaths of at least four farmers. In that case, "the benefits accrued to the military, even though the farms themselves were tilled by tenant farmers who were essentially treated like serfs."

 

Pakistan's military, which already wields significant influence in the nation of around 230 million, gained more authority through recent controversial legislation that legalized all past, current, and future army-government ventures aimed at bolstering national development or strategic interests. These changes come as elections are expected, and public frustration mounts over the imprisonment of former Prime Minister Imran Khan on corruption charges, which he attributed to the army chief of staff.

 

It's reported that even more land for corporate farming is being offered to Gulf states and China through the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). Local media have quoted the army's chief as seeking approximately $100 billion in investment from these countries, including farm projects, which could facilitate substantial agreements between foreign firms and the Pakistani military.

 

However, the Pakistani government's own policy documents advocate for an alternative approach to addressing food shortages by investing in small farmers and equipping them with the necessary skills to produce their own food, suggesting a different path toward food security in the country.