The Punjab government, accepting the demands of the Pakistan Flour Mills Association (PFMA), has announced that there will be no bar on wheat procurement by the flour mills in the province. Flour mills can buy whatever quantity and from wherever they want during the ongoing wheat procurement campaign while demand of ban on procurement by the feed mills has also been admitted.
The government accepted these demands during a meeting of the PFMA delegation with the Chief Secretary Punjab Yousaf Naseem Khokhar held here on Monday. The PFMA delegation was led by Asim Raza Ahmad while others were Mian Muhammad Riaz, Chaudhry Iftikhar Mattoo, Chaudhry Qaiser Rasheed and Raza Abbas.
The delegation apprised the chief secretary about hardships being faced by the flour milling industry, hurdles being created by the food department in procurement by the industry and inappropriate attitude of the department officials towards the millers. The delegation also expressed its reservations over procurement by the feed mills.
Chief Secretary accepting all the demands of the delegation decided that there should be no bar on procurement by the mills, vehicles of the mills would not be impounded during transportation of grain and there will be a ban on wheat purchase by the feed mills.
It was also decided to appoint a focal person who would directly supervise implementation on all these decisions and to run the affairs smoothly. Mills will inform the focal person regarding any violation of this agreement by the food department Punjab. Disclosing these details, PFMA Group leader Asim Raza Ahmad expressed his pleasure over the decision taken by the government of the Punjab and the Chief Secretary. He said that timely decision taken by the Chief Secretary has averted a food crisis in the province.
It may be added here that the PFMA had given a call on Friday to stop supply of flour after three days if their demands of giving the mills a free hand for wheat procurement, not impounding vehicles of the industry and banning the feed milling industry from procurement is not met.