Syed Nazim Hussain Shah, MPA Chairman of Task Force Punjab, said on Sunday that chief minister had given Rs 2 billion subsidy to provide essential items at affordable rates in the province. Under this project, the 20-kg flour bag was being sold for Rs 300 and a kilogram of ghee would be sold for Rs 118.
He said that flour prices increased in Punjab due to smuggling to other provinces and Afghanistan. He said that the smuggling had never been checked in the past.
The Punjab government has initiated Rs 22 billion Food Stamp Scheme (FSS) to eliminate poverty and uplift the standard of living of the society's low-income segment, Nazim Shah said. Syed Nazim Shah told the meeting that the provision of good quality edibles would be ensured at fixed rates in Gujranwala district during Ramazan.
Nazim Shah said that flourmill owners had started using 'negative tactics' and had threatened to go on strike but the Punjab government did not yield to their pressure tactics. He said that 500,000 families would benefit from the first phase of the Food Stamp Scheme while the second phase, starting from September 15, would provide relief to another 800,000 families. He said that a total of 1.2 million families would benefit from the programme, as they would be given Rs 1,000 every month. Nazim said that a transparent system would be evolved to help deserving families benefit from the scheme.