The Sindh government on Thursday decided to export the surplus wheat and also sought the Federal government support through Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) in this regard. The decision was taken in a meeting held here on Thursday to review the prevailing stock and market price of wheat. Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah chaired the meeting at the Chief Minister House, said a statement.
The Sindh Chief Minister has constituted a 3-member committee consisting of Sindh Minister for Finance Syed Murad Ali Shah, Sindh Minister for Health Jam Mehtab Dahar and Sindh Minister for Excise and Taxation Gianchand Esrani to work out and prepare an export mechanism within 2 to 3 days. Addressing the meeting, he directed the authorities of Food Department to float the tender for exporting the wheat within 3 days, to call competitive bids from wheat exporters.
He directed the officers strictly to stop the wheat movement from other provinces to Sindh province, and take strict action against the wheat hoarding and sale of sub-standard wheat in the market. The Sindh Chief Minister was of the view that since the Federal Government had allowed for import of wheat without consultation with the Sindh Government, specially when Sindh Government and even Punjab government were possessing huge stock of indigenous produce of wheat, it should share the losses and extend its support for exporting the surplus wheat of the Sindh province.
He advised the mill owners to refrain from marketing the substandard flour and directed the authorities of food department to analyse the substandard imported wheat and to ascertain that up to what extent it was injurious to human health. The CM Sindh said that growers were backbone of our economy and also main supporters of PPP. He said that Sindh Government is committed to protect the interests of the growers at any cost.
He said that Sindh Government has already paid Rs 4.6 billion subsidy on the procurement of wheat from the growers at the support price to protect the farmers from losses. The meeting was informed that Sindh has wheat stock of 1.1 million tonnes out of which 400,000 tonnes are available at Karachi for immediate export. Sindh Minister for Finance Syed Murad Ali Shah, Sindh Minister Health Jam Mehtab Dahar, Sindh Minister for Excise and Taxation Gianchand Esrani, Sindh Chief Secretary Sajjad Saleem Hotiana, Secretary to CM Alumdin Bullo, Secretary Food Saeed Awan, Secretary Finance Sohail Rajput and other officials concerned were also present in the meeting.
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