Punjab Food Department will have to procure 400,000 tons more wheat than its previous target, as the Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Livestock (Minfal) has requested Punjab government to provide an additional 400,000 tons wheat from the agreed quota of local production.
However, the Punjab government has not taken any decision yet, sources said here on Friday. The Food Department, in a summary submitted to Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif for decision, said that Punjab had only enough wheat for its people till the new crop could be harvested.
The Punjab government, Balochistan and the North Western Frontier Province (NWFP) made an agreement through a memorandum of understanding (MoU), signed between the Punjab Food Department, NWFP Food Department and the Balochistan Food Department in April 2008. The Punjab government had agreed to supply wheat worth Rs 2,480.4 million to NWFP (124,000 tons) and Rs 1,540 million (30,000 tons) to Balochistan during 2008.
Sources said the Punjab government, in October, 2008, refused to provide wheat worth Rs 1,723 million to the stakeholders. The Punjab Food Department received 4,020 million (Rs 2,480 from the NWFP and Rs 1,540 million from Balochistan) as advance payment for the supply of wheat. However, the department was willing to refund the remaining balance.
Minfal has demanded of the Punjab government to provide 400,000 tons wheat (200,000 tons for Sindh and 200,000 tons for Balochistan and NWFP). Sources said the Punjab Food Department had 1.2 million tons wheat, which was only sufficient for Punjab's inhabitants. They said the ministry wanted to mix imported wheat with local wheat as the imported wheat was of poor quality.
They said the Punjab government had made a request to the Trading Corporation of Pakistan for 300,000 tons wheat from wheat that was scheduled to land in February. Punjab Food Secretary Irfan Elahi said the Punjab government had provided locally produced wheat to the other provinces under the MoU. He said the Punjab government would not provide total amount of wheat it had agreed in the MoU, adding that it would refund the excess balance to both provinces.
He said the Punjab government had agreed to supply 50,000 tons wheat to Balochistan and 86,000 tons to NWFP, adding that it had already provided 40,000 tons to Balochistan and 61,000 tons to NWFP. He said the food ministry had demanded 400,000 tons wheat from the Punjab government, adding that the Punjab government would not provide any wheat to other provinces unless it was provided with the requested 300,000 tons.