ISLAMABAD: Flour mill owners of the Rawalpindi Division have lodged a complaint with the federal government against Punjab administration for not permitting them to purchase wheat.
According to a letter written by the Pakistan Flour Mills Association addressed to the Ministry of National Food Security, a wheat crisis was looming in the country despite record wheat production.
Around 40pc of flour mills in Islamabad and Rawalpindi division are not functioning due to unavailability of wheat to grind.
The letter stated that flour mills were facing difficulty in purchasing wheat directly from farmers due to restrictions by the Punjab government.
Flour Mills Association Punjab Vice President Sheikh Kashif Shabir told Dawn that most of the flour mills situated in north Punjab as well as the federal capital do not have wheat. He said the main reason for this was the permit system that led to the shortage of wheat supply.
Consumers are facing severe price shocks in flour rates all over the country. Reuters/File
KARACHI: Amid massive imports of wheat and new crops of the current season, consumers are facing severe price shocks in flour rates all over the country.
In Punjab, 20 kg flour bag prices reached Rs1,030 from Rs860 a couple of days ago due to a halt in supply of subsidised wheat to the flour mills. Taking cue from Punjab millers, flour mill owners in Sindh have also followed suit.
The price of Sindh’s new wheat crop has soared to Rs5,500 per 100 kg bag in the open market which was Rs4,800-5,000 when it started arriving in mid-March. As a result, flour millers have increased the rate of flour No.2.5 to 61.50, up by Rs7 per kg in the last one week followed by same increase made in fine and super fine flour to Rs65 per kg, respectively.
Retailers say that they were having intermittent and limited wheat flour supplies for the last four weeks before Ramazan but the supplies totally dried up at the advent of the month of fasting. File
LAHORE: Sugar and wheat flour have gone missing from the shelves of the most of retail shops in the provincial metropolis as the government is focusing on maintaining supplies to its Sasta Ramazan bazaars.
Retailers say that they were having intermittent and limited wheat flour supplies for the last four weeks before Ramazan but the supplies totally dried up at the advent of the month of fasting.
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Rs130 million fine slapped on millers for substandard ‘atta’
Islamabad
March 7, 2021
Rawalpindi: The District Food Department has imposed a fine of Rs130 million on flourmills from July 2020 to March 6, 2021 for supplying sub-standard ‘atta’ at skyrocketing prices to the public. The concerned department has taken action against different flourmills according to ‘Wheat Release Policy’ in this regard.
According to District Food Department, dozens of flourmill owners are supplying low-quality ‘atta’ and looting innocent public with both hands. The department has taken action according to ‘Wheat Release Policy’. The authorities concerned have claimed to supply 80 per cent local wheat and only 20 per cent imported wheat to flourmills to grind.