Pakistan: Flour Crisis Looms Over Rawalpindi and Islamabad Due to Wheat Ban in Punjab:

An ongoing flour crisis continues to worsen in Rawalpindi and Islamabad as the Punjab Food Department abruptly banned the supply of wheat to mills in the region.

As a result, the Rawalpindi and Islamabad Flour Mills Association announced the suspension of flour distribution as of Monday, leading to fears of a possible food emergency in the twin cities, as reported by the Express Tribune.

As stated in the Express Tribune, starting Friday night, an order cancellation for wheat, flour, and fine flour, as well as tandoor and retail outlets, resulted in an immediate market shortage.

The emergency meeting of the Rawalpindi Flour Mills Association, led by Patron-in-Chief Sheikh Tariq Sadiq, focused on several proposals to alleviate the crisis. He, as well as the other members, expressed their frustration at the lack of wheat permits for the mills in Rawalpindi and Islamabad. They pointed out that both cities rely on the wheat-reserve regions of Punjab.

The statement issued by the association predicted that, in the absence of flour and wheat permits, the mills would be unable to produce and distribute flour. They described the Punjab Department of Food's lack of decisiveness as "ill-considered," predicting that a crisis of humanitarian proportions would hit the central district and its surrounding regions if disruptions continue.

The Pakistan Naanbai Association continues its criticism of how government officials implement and manage flour prices. While speaking to The Express Tribune about flour prices, the Association's central president, Shafiq Qureshi, mentioned how the price of a red flour sac of 79 kg stated and corrected Shehbaz Sharif and Maryam Nawaz’s terms of administrations flour price of 79 kg red flour sac of PKR 5, 500 has increased to PKR 11, 000 and fine flour up from PKR 6, 200 to PKR 12, 600.

Blaming the government Wrapping up the enforcement of price control and punishment of tandoors, Qureshi stated from October 1, the demolition of tandoor and sealed 79 tandoors followed tandoor owners being fined the government enforcement price control task force with PKR 50,000.

On analysis of the enforcement as being discouraged wheat supply management, rather than focusing on tandoor owners, the Association has filed a request for a price control committee meeting to discuss the management of flour and the controllable prices of roti to the public the Express Tribune reports.