Center will supply 400,000MT wheat to Sindh government :Minister

HYDERABAD, Nov 15 (APP):The Federal Minister for National Food Security and Research Sahibzada Muhammad Mehboob Sultan has said the center will supply 400,000 ton wheat to Sindh Government on the latter’s request.

“The federal government is giving a gift of 400,000 ton wheat to Sindh government to help reduce the soaring prices of flour [in the province],” he said while talking to the media and speaking at inauguration ceremony of supply of wheat to Sindh Government from the warehouse of Pakistan Agricultural Storage and Supply Corporation (PASSCO) here on Friday.

The Federal Secretary National Food Security and Research Hashim Popalzai and Sindh Secretary Food Laiq Ahmed Khan, among other officials and dignitaries, were also present on the occasion. The minister informed that the wheat export had been banned in the ongoing year because of the lower than expected yield.

According to him, the expected target of wheat production was 25.8 million ton but only 24 million ton could be harvest due to the unfavourable weather conditions.

“To ensure the security of wheat supply Sindh government will have to take more effective steps in the future,” he underlined.

He said after the Sindh Secretary Food apprised the center about the shortage of wheat Prime Minister Imran Khan immediately ordered supply of 400,000 ton wheat to the province to address the shortfall.
Sultan told that the supply of wheat to the province had also started from the PASSCO’s warehouses in Khairpur and Ranipur.

He said the federal supply had led to an immediate drop in the rate of wheat bag by Rs4 per kilogram, quoting the provincial secretary food for the drop in the price. “All the 4 provinces are equal before the federal government,” he said.

The minister informed that the PM received briefing about the food security every week because he wanted to ensure that there was no shortage of edible commodities in the country.

The minister said the government was planning to increase the crop production in the country and in that regard the government was in contact with the Chinese experts in the field.

“Our government doesn’t believe in subsidy. We want to improve the situation to the level that the farmers no longer required subsidy,” he said.

Sultan said the government was working over the projects worth around Rs300 billion to increase the exports including of the fisheries, adding that the government was trying to promote exports and discourage imports.

Commenting on the onslaught of locusts in Sindh, he said the locusts have attacked the province after around 30 years, travelling all the way from Yemen to Pakistan. According to him, the locusts had also entered certain parts of Punjab.

He apprised that 3 planes were in the field to carry out aerial sprays in the areas affected by the locusts.
He said even the opposition leaders from Sindh had appreciated the federal government’s aerial spray campaigns in the province.

The minister said the aerial operation continued in Nawabshah and Rahimyar Khan. Commenting on the issue of removal of former PM and leader of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz Mian Nawaz Sharif’s name from Exit Control List, he said Sharif had received bail from the court and the matter of ECL would also be decided in the court.

He said the people of Pakistan gave mandate to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) to conduct accountability. However, he added that the government did not punish Sharif rather he was convicted by the court of law in a case instituted before the PTI’s government came to the power.