SWABI: Local farmers rallied here on Thursday, urging that the district be declared calamity-hit following a recent hailstorm that devastated vegetable farms and standing crops. The gathering was jointly organised by the Kashthkar Coordination Council (KCC), Kisan Board (Jamaat-i-Islami farmers wing), and Anjuman-i-Kashthkaran Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (AKKP). KCC central general secretary Liaqat Yousafzai stated that the hailstones had destroyed various crops, including vegetables, sugarcane, peas, and maize. He added that many farming areas were inundated, which could delay wheat sowing for several days, and soil erosion was evident. Khalid Khan, district president of the Kisan Board, stated that they would continue their struggle for farmers’ rights, as many face severe financial constraints and find it difficult to survive in the current period of high inflation. In a unanimously adopted resolution, the farmers and their leaders demanded financial assistance for growers to help them survive the natural calamity and continue working in their fields. Without government support, they warned, many would be forced to abandon their profession. They further stated that, although the rulers had claimed Pakistan was an agricultural country, they had never given the sector the importance it deserved. Small growers, in particular, had suffered immensely, despite agriculture being a primary contributor to the national economy. The farmers and their leaders demanded that agriculture be given proper importance and that financial support be provided to struggling farmers.