Farmers in Farah resume poppy cultivation

Large numbers of farmers in the western province of Farah have returned to opium poppy cultivation, complaining that the seeds and fertilisers provided by the government for crop substitution were insufficient. Residents said poppies were being grown on at least 100 acres of land in the province, but officials downplayed the figures, saying the area involved was not more than 35 acres. Gul Ahmad Qaderi, 24, a farmer in the Dasht-e-Bakwa district, said on November 28 that he was growing poppies because other crops did not earn enough even to cover costs.