Sindh wheat crisis seen deepening

Sindh is facing serious wheat crisis where commodity rates have gone up to Rs 1200 per 100 kg bag and market analysts expect further increase in the coming weeks due to depleted stocks.
Surge in rates would continue at least in Sindh till imported commodity touches port at Karachi.
However, analysts are not expecting much improvement in wheat supply in the province even after arrival of imported commodity. They argue that gap of demand and supply is much more than what is being accessed by the authorities and imported commodity would be instrumental in bringing commodity rates down only for a short while.
The Punjab government's ban on wheat movement is seen as a major reason for commodity shortage in Sindh. Analysts say that had the government of Punjab accepted the Centre's advice of lifting the ban, Sindh and other two deficit provinces-NWFP and Balochistan-would have been in comfortable position regarding commodity stocks.
They are critical to the Sindh Food Department policy, which they term as faulty and hence is adding fuel to fire in this case.
The analysts held the provincial Food Department responsible of pushing the province into troubled waters as far as wheat availability and stocks were concerned.
Abdul Majid, a wheat dealer, appeared more disappointed. He believes that Punjab was not resorting to fair play with Sindh for supply of wheat.
In his opinion, The Punjab governments' move would widen gap of mistrust between the provinces.
The Punjab government is hardly ready to take advice from any quarter on its decision of imposing ban on inter-provincial wheat movement, which is clear negation of the constitution. It had also turned deaf ear to the Prime Minister's twice issued orders.
Ban is not paying any good to Punjab either. It neither helped the Punjab government achieve its wheat procurement target nor stabilised the commodity price within the province.
Even commodity prices have started showing downward trend in the province and now 40-kg bag is available for Rs 395 against Rs 405 of the last week. Offloading of stocks by the ginners who need storage for cotton crop is one of the reasons of declining commodity prices in Punjab.