Only in Pakistan could a bumper crop year turn into a neverending horror show for wheat farmers, who look increasingly exasperated at the hands of dilly-dallying government machinery. That wheat prices in Punjab have plummetted even below Rs 3000 per maund (in stark contrast to the support price of Rs 3900 per maund) comes as a grave reflection of how policies, no matter how well-intentioned, amount to nothing unless followed with concrete action. The uncertainty surrounding the government procurement has begun to make its way to the assembly floor where none other than Speaker Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan highlighted the open market operating on a level tremendously below the price floor. With limited yet expensive storage facilities, a constant threat of weather events and the sword of backbreaking debts, sustenance needs on top of preparations for the next crop season staring in the face of small farmers, no one, in their right mind, could expect them to wait until the “moisture content” reaches an acceptable level for Food Minister Bilal Yasin. The clock is ticking fast and if the government continues to neglect the survival of its farmers, it better brace itself for a double whammy. Strikes and protest demonstrations are fast heading their way. Meanwhile, a single bad year can eat away all production gains and Pakistan would again find itself stranded in last year’s quagmire where a conflict on the other side of the globe was enough to send its authorities scampering in all directions to feed bellies. The plummeting wheat prices have pushed farmers to the brink, creating a dire situation that requires immediate attention and intervention to prevent irreversible consequences. Why is it that no attention was given to precious foreign exchange being squandered to import large quantities of wheat for prices as high as “Rs 4700 per maund” despite promising forecasts about a super crop due to expanded cultivated area and good yield prospects? As appropriately slammed in the parliament, something as crucial as wheat, which forms the backbone of the farmer community, cannot be toyed around for the sake of “kickbacks.” Those who participated in this ongoing “economic murder” need to prepare themselves for an uncomfortable line of questioning. *