PESHAWAR: Flour millers of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Monday threatened to launch a province-wide protest if the unconstitutional ban on movement of wheat and flour from Punjab wasn’t lifted forthwith.
Speaking during at a joint meeting here at the chamber house, Sarhad Chamber of Commerce and Industry President Junaid Altaf and Chairman of Pakistan Flour Mill Association Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (PFMA-KP) Naeem Butt expressed grave concern over unconstitutional ban on wheat and flour movement from Punjab and stated the move had badly hit KP’s people, flour industries and trade.
Junaid Altaf stressed that policies and actions must be abandoned that’s become causes for closure of industry and businesses.
We want to flourish economic and trade activities.
Junaid Altaf stated the situation is quite alarming and needs to be taken serious notice by the Central and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governments to avert any wheat and flour crisis in the province.
“90 per cent of the flour industry had closed in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa”, Naeem Butt informed.
The joint meeting was attended by senior vice president Muhammad Nadeem, vice president Sabir Ahmad Bangash, former presidents Fazal Moqeem Khan, Faizi Muhammad Faizi, former vice president Shuja Muhammad, members of the SCCI’s executive committee Gul Zaman, Ishfaq Ahmad, Mujeebur Rehman and Saifullah Khan, along with office bearers of PFMA KP, flour millers and dealers, bakers and SCCI members were present in a large number.
The FPMA KP chairman said rates of flour, maida and other items are escalating on a daily basis due to an unconstitutional ban on wheat and flour by the government of Punjab.
Naeem Butt said a 20-KG bag rate has increased at Rs3000, which was sold at Rs1600 after the 25th August.
He said the Punjab government erected check points after imposition of the ban and blamed monitoring officers who were allegedly allowing vehicles loaded with wheat and flour by using extortion tactics, bribes and in the name of permit.
The PFMA KP chairman blamed this illegal practice was going in with connivance of the top bureaucracy of Punjab
He regretted it is the worst kind of cruelty and injustice with terrorism-affected people of KP who are being forced to buy a 20-KG flour bag at Rs3000.
The total wheat requirement of KP is 5.3million metric ton against its production of 1.2million, according to which, the province is facing a shortfall of 4.2million metric ton wheat, Naeem Butt explained.
He furthermore elaborated surplus wheat available with PASCCO and urged the provincial government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to buy it and release it to the local flour industry to avoid a crisis in the province.
