Flour Prices Surge as Punjab’s Wheat Transport Ban Hits KP Hard
CHITRAL: Civil society representatives from Upper and Lower Chitral have called on Chief Minister Sohail Afridi to instruct the food department to sell around 200,000 wheat bags lying in government godowns for the past two years at lower prices to prevent them from going to waste. Speaking at a press conference at the Chitral Press Club, social activist Farooq Ahmed along with former councillors Abdul Majeed Qureshi, Fakhruddin, and Mohammad Sabir warned that the grain stored in more than 18 warehouses across Chitral was deteriorating due to neglect and high government pricing. Reports of termites damaging the wheat in godowns at Drosh and other areas have also surfaced.
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The activists expressed concern that not only the wheat but also millions of rupees’ worth of empty sacks were being spoiled due to government inaction. They reminded authorities that a similar crisis had occurred a few years ago when large quantities of rotten wheat were dumped into the river. With winter approaching, they cautioned that Chitral could face a severe food shortage if the government failed to distribute the stock at affordable rates. Mr Ahmed also appealed to the Peshawar High Court Chief Justice to take notice of the situation.
Meanwhile, in Oghi (Mansehra), traders urged the federal government to intervene in the Punjab government’s ban on transporting wheat and flour to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Local trader leader Mian Saifur Rehman said the restriction had pushed the price of a 20kg flour bag to Rs3,000, up from Rs1,700, forcing many flour mills in Hazara to shut down. In Swabi, consumers reported a similar crisis, with flour prices jumping from Rs1,500 to Rs3,000 within weeks. Officials attributed the surge to the transport ban and flood-related losses in Punjab, while citizens demanded strict action against hoarders exploiting the shortage.
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