LAHORE: Sindh move to keep wheat support price higher than the federal government is feared to fuel flour price hike and upset procurement process in the country, a top official said on Monday.
Sindh government increased wheat support price by Rs600 per 40 kilogram, causing problems for the government in procuring wheat, a spokesperson of the Punjab Food Department said. “The consequent expensive flour rate in the open market can cause serious problems for the common man as well,” he said. Sindh last week hugely increased the minimum wheat procurement price to Rs2,000 per 40kg. Sindh cabinet decided to increase the support price to avoid shortage of wheat next year. The increase was necessary to avoid importing next year, it said. The provincial price was in sheer contrast to decision taken by Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the federal cabinet earlier last week in which the minimum wheat procurement price was fixed at Rs1,600 as against an earlier rate of Rs1,400 per 40 kg. Pakistan, the world’s eighth-biggest wheat producer, has already imported about 430,000 tons so far this year to build strategic reserves of the grain and plug a 1.6-million-ton shortage, caused in part by damage to crops after heavy rains.
The current price of wheat in the international market is $225 per ton while the increase in price by the Sindh government is $ 100 more than the international price, which will be borne by the farmers and the common man, said the spokesperson of Punjab Food Department. The Punjab Food Department is currently supplying wheat to flour mills at Rs1,475 on the basis of which the price of 20 kg bag of flour has been fixed at Rs860, he said.
“An increase of whooping Rs600 in support price in one go will lead to a multifold increase in the price of flour,” he said. “The conscious increase in prices by the Sindh government can do nothing but harm. Given the international market, it is important to determine the rate of wheat while factoring in ground realities.” Given the prevalent price of wheat, the cultivation of rest of the commodities should not be adversely affected and the production of wheat should also not increase to the extent that export of wheat could not become infeasible on the bases of rate fixed by the Sindh government.
The provincial official asked the Sindh government to take decision while considering interest of people. “Such unrealistic decision will cause injustice to both the country and its people.”
