Swabi Tobacco Farmers Burn 500kg Crop in Protest Over Low Buying Prices

Tobacco farmers in Pakistan’s Swabi district staged a protest outside the Swabi Press Club, with one grower burning around 500 kilograms of tobacco over what farmers described as unfairly low purchase prices. The protest was attended by tobacco growers, farmer union representatives, members of the Swabi Action Committee, political workers and local residents. Farmer Tamriaz Khan, a resident of Shahmansoor village, set fire to five bundles of fine-quality Flue-Cured Virginia tobacco during the demonstration. He said the government had fixed the tobacco price at Rs740 per kilogram, but farmers were being offered around Rs350 per kilogram by companies, small cigarette manufacturers and traders.

Khan said the price being offered to growers did not cover the cost of production. According to him, farmers were already facing financial difficulties after suffering losses during the previous season. He also accused the federal and provincial governments of failing to protect tobacco growers despite collecting taxes from the sector. Khan criticised the Pakistan Tobacco Board (PTB), alleging that its officials had not adequately monitored tobacco purchasing points in the crop-growing areas.

The farmer further claimed that smaller cigarette manufacturers and other tobacco-related businesses had shifted operations from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to Punjab and Kashmir because of what he described as a more favourable business environment there. During the protest, Swabi Action Committee spokesperson Salim Khan Advocate also raised questions about the impact of federal excise duties on tobacco growers. He alleged that a Rs390 federal excise duty was being recovered from farmers through different means by companies and cigarette manufacturers.

The protesters demanded that the government intervene and ensure that tobacco companies purchase the crop at the officially fixed rate. They also called on the Pakistan Tobacco Board and district administration to take action to protect growers from what they described as exploitation in the tobacco market.

The farmers warned that the protest could be expanded if their demands were not addressed. The allegations regarding purchase prices and the conduct of tobacco companies were made by the protesting farmers. No response from the companies or relevant government authorities was included in the reports on the protest.