Ministry asks Balochistan, Sindh to implement official wheat rate

ISLAMABAD: The Ministry of National Food Security has written a letter to the provincial governments of Balochistan and Sindh for ignoring the official rate of wheat and buying it at higher prices.

The food ministry has asked the provincial governments to implement the official wheat rate of Rs3,900 per maund.

The Ministry of National Food Security has written letter to the governments of Balochistan and Sindh on the issue of fixing the uniform support price of wheat for the current season.

The food ministry said tht both provinces have ignored the official rate and fixed different rates for wheat per maund. The Balochistan government has decided to buy wheat from farmers at Rs4,300 per maund, while Sindh will buy wheat from farmers at Rs4,000 per maund.

The government has fixed the official rate at Rs3,900 per maund at the federal level for the year 2023-24. Keeping in view the issue of dispute over prices, the Ministry of National Food Security has written letters to the governments of Balochistan and Sindh to implement the uniform rate.

According to the letter, both provinces have endorsed the decision of the ECC to fix the official support price of wheat at Rs3,900 per maund. The letter has expressed the apprehension that the dispute over prices may harm the farmer and the wheat production, and may create problems of storage, smuggling and hoarding.

It said that the Pakistan Agricultural Storage and Services Corporation (PASSCO) will also not be able to buy wheat from both provinces at Rs4,300 and Rs4,000 respectively. The government has asked Balochistan and Sindh to review their decisions and implement the decision of buying wheat at Rs3,900 per maund.