Federal Home Minister Rana Sanaullah recently took notice of the ban on the delivery of flour and wheat from Punjab and made it clear that there would be no compromise on the uninterrupted supply of these essential commodities to the people.
In a high-level meeting in Peshawar, which he presided over on Tuesday, the Minister discussed the smuggling of wheat, sugar, flour, and fertilizer with officials from the provincial government.
He instructed them to devise a mechanism for the uninterrupted supply of flour and wheat in the market and immediately take stock of one lakh metric tonnes of wheat from Pakistan Agricultural Storage and Services Corporation (Pasco). The Minister further instructed the police not to stop the supply of flour from Punjab to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa for domestic purposes.
Also Read: Rangers detain PTI Chairman and former Prime Minister Imran Khan
During the meeting, the Chief Secretary of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa briefed the Minister about the shortage of wheat quota in the province and urged the Punjab government to increase the quota to meet the current demand of the province. He emphasized that the current shortage of wheat and flour in the province cannot be met without the support of the Punjab government.
The Federal Secretary for National Food Security and Research, the Secretary of Food Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and the Secretary of Food Punjab also participated in the meeting via video link. The meeting discussed in detail the shortage of flour and wheat in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The ongoing strike against the supply of flour in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was postponed by the Pakistan Flour Mills Association. The Chairman of the Association, Haji Muhammad Iqbal, gave the federal, Punjab, and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa governments one week's time to immediately remove all the check-posts in Punjab so that wheat and flour delivery from Punjab can start. He warned that if the ban continues even after a week, flour mills across the country will be shut down indefinitely, extending the scope of the flour mill strike.
During a press conference in Peshawar, the Chairman and Group Leader of the Pakistan Flour Mills Association Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Muhammad Naeem Butt, said that the Prime Minister of Pakistan had imposed an unconstitutional and illegal ban on the delivery of wheat and flour by the Punjab government.
He added that they were called to a meeting in the office of the Chief Secretary Khyber Pakhtunkhwa regarding the ban on wheat and flour delivery from Punjab, where they contacted the Punjab government via video link, but there was no positive progress on their part.
To provide flour to the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and reduce their problems, the Pakistan Flour Mills Association decided to postpone its two-day symbolic strike against the suspension of flour supply in the province. They plan to grind surplus wheat in their mills and supply flour to the province from morning till 2 pm, after which they will continue their symbolic strike.
11 Feb, 2025
11 Feb, 2025