The Provincial Minister for Jails, Chaudhry Abdul Ghafoor has expressed his confidence that the Sialkot would easily achieve the target of purchasing 92,000 metric tones of wheat. The Food Department was purchasing wheat directly from the growers at nine purchase centres established in Sialkot, Daska, Pasrur and Sambrial tehsils of the district, he added.
Presiding over a meeting held to review the pace of wheat purchase campaign on Tuesday, he disclosed that the government under the directives of Punjab Chief Minister has doubled the target due to better production of wheat. The government has eliminated the role of middleman and dealers for the protection of wheat growers' right and to ensure a hurdle-free environment to the growers at wheat purchase centres in Punjab, he said.
The District Food Controller Sialkot, Rohail Butt informed the meeting that wheat purchase target has been 9.20 lakh bags fixed instead of 5.20 lakh in Sialkot district and so far 1.34 lakh wheat bags had been purchased in the district. The District Co-ordination Officer (DPO), Captain Atta Muhammad Khan (Retd) told the meeting that officers of revenue department were monitoring the wheat purchase process in all four tehsils of Sialkot district.