Pakistan, June 4 -- Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif on Wednesday said that the Kissan Card programme was transforming the lives of farmers and helping them achieve financial independence.

In a statement, she said Punjab's farmers would no longer remain indebted to commission agents (aarhtis) and would be able to live with dignity. The chief minister said it was her vision to see farmers of the province moving towards financial autonomy and prosperity through modern agricultural reforms.

She said that under the government's initiative to introduce innovation in the agriculture sector, more than 832,000 farmers across Punjab had been issued Kissan Cards for the first time. Through the scheme, farmers had utilised loans amounting...