South Punjab traders,Industrialists gather to save the region from flour crisis

Multan, August 18th: Traders and Industrialists of South Punjab have warned the Government that there would be a severe crisis of flour if Government does not restore the judicious quota of flour mills keeping in view the population of South Punjab.
They rejected the wheat release policy of Punjab Food department and said that Government did not let the flour mills to purchase wheat from the farmers to meet its procurement targets.Now it had lessened their quota.
It was voiced at a representative meeting of Chambers of Commerce & Industry South Punjab, PCGA and other associations of South Punjab here on Monday.The meeting was attended by presidents of the chamber of commerce & Industry Multan, Bahawalpur, Khanewal, Vehari, Khanewal and Rahimyarkhan Women Chamber of Commerce & Industry of Multan division,PCGA, APBUMA  and APFMA and it reviewed the problems confronted by the flour millers and a flour crisis developed in South Punjab by the concerned departments.
They said that South Punjab produces 64 % wheat but its quota was reduced considerably.
Representatives of Pakistan Flour Mills Association (PFMA) said the policy of issuing wheat on the basis of urban population is totally wrong and is tantamount to inviting crisis on its own.
They claimed that the flour mills in small districts of the province are going to be deprived of the uniform quota of wheat at the cost of a few large cities, making it impossible to run flour mills by members of PFMA. Resultantly, they added, the supply of flour in the market will be severely affected.Now this policy will create a new flour crisis in the area. Flour miller asked the Punjab government to release wheat for grinding under a liberal issue policy, terming it a panacea for all ills ranging from pilferage of grains to flour price hike. If market players are given wheat as per their actual demand for grinding, the ghost mills will automatically quit the market as functional mills will not be dependent on them for meeting their grain requirements anymore, said leaders of PFMA.
The meeting suggested that the Government must review its wheat quota policy and grant at least 40 bags (of 100 kg each) per body quota.The meeting was addressed by MCCI President Sheikh Fazal Elahi, Senior Vice President, Mian Rashid Iqbal  Khawaja Muhammad Yousaf, Ch.Muhamnmad Shafiq Aleem, APBUMA Chairman Syed Muhammad Ahsan Shah, PCGA leaders Shehzad Ali Khan,Suhail Mehmood Haral, Rao Sadaruddin,, Ex-President of MCCI Khawaja Muhammad Usman,Javed Iqbal Zia-ur-rehman, Muhammad Ghazanfar, Ch.Muhammad Jamil,Mehmood Khan Durrani, Ch.Abdul Jabbar, Shafi Anis, Sheikh, Mian Idrees Ahmed, Sheikh Akbar Ali, Saeed Agha,and Muhammad Shafiq Secretary General of MCCI.