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Sindh to seal borders with Punjab to check wheat smuggling
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
By Imtiaz Ali
Karachi
The Sindh government will hold a meeting within the next two days to deliberate upon imposing section 144, sealing borders with Punjab, and to purchase an early wheat crop for Sindh, Food Minister Nawabzada Mir Nadir Ali Khan Magsi informed the Sindh Assembly on Monday during a question-hour session.
We will seal borders so that the early wheat crop of Sindh remains in the province, he said.
To a suggestion by Dr Ali Ahmed that Sindh should also reject substandard imported wheat on the pattern of the NWFP, the food minister said that he
had written a letter to the
federal government, complaining about substandard quality of wheat. He said that it was compulsion of the Sindh government to buy it because it had no other option.
Answering another question by Bachal Shah about the import of wheat for Sindh through the Gwadar Port instead of the Karachi Port, the minister said that he had raised the issue as it would cost additional Rs180 million to the Sindh exchequer. He suggested that wheat imported through the Gwadar Port should be given to Punjab.
He said that the federal government would provide 115,000 tones of wheat to Sindh through the Pakistan Agricultural Storage and Supply Corporation (Passco), the Punjab Food and Trader Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) and the World Food Programme up to April 2009. He said that this quantity of wheat was expected to arrive in the second week of February 2009. He said that despite this, there would be a shortage of wheat in Sindh. The minister said that they had requested the Punjab government to provide 100,000 tones instead of 20,000 tones.
To a supplementary question by Arif Jatoi, the minister said that the people would not die of hunger because God is great.
The minister announced that he would try to contain the shortage by giving wheat to the poor instead of giving Bardana (100kg bag) to the rich people. He said that the wheat storage capacity in Sindh was up to 700,000 tones, and the government was trying to address this problem.
The construction of warehouses through public-private partnership was under consideration and there was an unapproved scheme worth Rs2 billion in the pipeline.
To a question by Arif Jatoi as to why the food department was not purchasing rice as it has powers and infrastructure, the food minister said that the Sindh government had no money. He said that Passco had doubled its centres in the province and the provincial government provided them with staff. To a question by Shahryar, the minister said that it was also the responsibility of the provincial government to take action against hoarders.
Meanwhile, the Sindh Assembly unanimously passed a resolution, seeking the purchase of paddy crops at fixed official rates.
The resolution moved by Pakistan Peoples Party legislator Munawar Abbasi read: The assembly resolves and recommends to the Sindh government to approach the federal government to ensure that Passco and TCP should purchase rice from rice mills in Sindh at appropriate prices so that growers of paddy get fixed a price of Rs700 per 40kg bag of paddy.
Abbasi said Passco and TCP had promised to purchase one million tones rice from Sindh at Rs1,400 per 40kg first quality rice and Rs1,200 per 40kg second quality rice. However, heavy rains destroyed paddy crops in December, as a result, both Passco and TCP had stopped purchasing rice.
Masroor Jatoi said the Sindh government should give a timeframe as to when the Passco would purchase paddy. A legislator from Thar suggested that Gwar should also be purchased at appropriate price as growers sell it at Rs300 per 40kg while they purchase it at Rs2,000 in Thar.
Imran Leghari said that the Passco had refused to purchase paddy in Dadu.
Minister for agriculture, Ali Nawaz Shah, said that they had held several meetings with the Passco and added that it would purchase rice under an agreement with rice millers. He admitted that input cost of crops had increased manifold and growers were not getting appropriate price for crops. He said that there was no shortage of fertilisers but its distribution was a problem.
Sindh to seal borders with Punjab to check wheat smuggling
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
By Imtiaz Ali
Karachi
The Sindh government will hold a meeting within the next two days to deliberate upon imposing section 144, sealing borders with Punjab, and to purchase an early wheat crop for Sindh, Food Minister Nawabzada Mir Nadir Ali Khan Magsi informed the Sindh Assembly on Monday during a question-hour session.
We will seal borders so that the early wheat crop of Sindh remains in the province, he said.
To a suggestion by Dr Ali Ahmed that Sindh should also reject substandard imported wheat on the pattern of the NWFP, the food minister said that he
had written a letter to the
federal government, complaining about substandard quality of wheat. He said that it was compulsion of the Sindh government to buy it because it had no other option.
Answering another question by Bachal Shah about the import of wheat for Sindh through the Gwadar Port instead of the Karachi Port, the minister said that he had raised the issue as it would cost additional Rs180 million to the Sindh exchequer. He suggested that wheat imported through the Gwadar Port should be given to Punjab.
He said that the federal government would provide 115,000 tones of wheat to Sindh through the Pakistan Agricultural Storage and Supply Corporation (Passco), the Punjab Food and Trader Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) and the World Food Programme up to April 2009. He said that this quantity of wheat was expected to arrive in the second week of February 2009. He said that despite this, there would be a shortage of wheat in Sindh. The minister said that they had requested the Punjab government to provide 100,000 tones instead of 20,000 tones.
To a supplementary question by Arif Jatoi, the minister said that the people would not die of hunger because God is great.
The minister announced that he would try to contain the shortage by giving wheat to the poor instead of giving Bardana (100kg bag) to the rich people. He said that the wheat storage capacity in Sindh was up to 700,000 tones, and the government was trying to address this problem.
The construction of warehouses through public-private partnership was under consideration and there was an unapproved scheme worth Rs2 billion in the pipeline.
To a question by Arif Jatoi as to why the food department was not purchasing rice as it has powers and infrastructure, the food minister said that the Sindh government had no money. He said that Passco had doubled its centres in the province and the provincial government provided them with staff. To a question by Shahryar, the minister said that it was also the responsibility of the provincial government to take action against hoarders.
Meanwhile, the Sindh Assembly unanimously passed a resolution, seeking the purchase of paddy crops at fixed official rates.
The resolution moved by Pakistan Peoples Party legislator Munawar Abbasi read: The assembly resolves and recommends to the Sindh government to approach the federal government to ensure that Passco and TCP should purchase rice from rice mills in Sindh at appropriate prices so that growers of paddy get fixed a price of Rs700 per 40kg bag of paddy.
Abbasi said Passco and TCP had promised to purchase one million tones rice from Sindh at Rs1,400 per 40kg first quality rice and Rs1,200 per 40kg second quality rice. However, heavy rains destroyed paddy crops in December, as a result, both Passco and TCP had stopped purchasing rice.
Masroor Jatoi said the Sindh government should give a timeframe as to when the Passco would purchase paddy. A legislator from Thar suggested that Gwar should also be purchased at appropriate price as growers sell it at Rs300 per 40kg while they purchase it at Rs2,000 in Thar.
Imran Leghari said that the Passco had refused to purchase paddy in Dadu.
Minister for agriculture, Ali Nawaz Shah, said that they had held several meetings with the Passco and added that it would purchase rice under an agreement with rice millers. He admitted that input cost of crops had increased manifold and growers were not getting appropriate price for crops. He said that there was no shortage of fertilisers but its distribution was a problem.
Sindh to seal borders with Punjab to check wheat smuggling
