LAHORE: Former chairman of the Public Accounts Committee Nadeem Afzal Chan has urged the Punjab government on Tuesday to follow the province of Sindh and announce support price of Rs 4000 per 40 kg for wheat procurement.

He was addressing a press conference at the Punjab Secretariat. He warned the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) would consider holding protests in case the government fails to meet farmers' demands. Chan pointed out that the PPP had increased support price of wheat during 2008 to 2013, resulting in surplus wheat production in the country.

He criticized successive governments for neglecting the welfare of farmers, pointing out that while the government announced Rs 12 billion package for the industry during the pandemic, not a single penny was allocated for farmers. Chan insisted that the government must purchase every grain of surplus wheat. He also criticized accused the caretaker government of allowing imports instead of utilizing existing stocks.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024