Sindh Food Department requested the cabinet to fix issue price of wheat of crop 2018.
The cabinet was told that during 2018, the Food Department procured 1.4 million (m) metric tonnes of wheat at support price of Rs 3,250 per bag. It was told that the department had carried forward wheat stocks of 0.456 mt of preceding year and the total wheat stock available with department was 1.775 mt.
It was also pointed out that after allocation of one mt of wheat for release, a balance of around 0.775 mt would be left with department. It was discussed that in order to off-load, leftover balance case had been taken up with federal government for allowing export of 0.5 mt of wheat and the remaining 0.275 mt would be reserved to meet needs of drought affected areas and other emergencies.
The Food Department requested cabinet to approve issue price of wheat at Rs 3,150 (packed in pp bag) and Rs 3,250 (packed in jute bag) and subsidy of Rs 7.66 billion in order to retire commercial banks borrowing.
Sindh Chief Minister (CM) Murad Ali Shah, constituted a committee under Chief Secretary, Mumtaz Shah to meet with traders and department and give his recommendation for fixation of price. “My view is very simple. I don’t want to exert extra burden of subsidy on exchequer,” Murad Ali said.
The cabinet on recommendation of selection committee appointed Iqbal Nafees Khan as Sindh Civil Servants Housing Foundation managing director for a period of two years.
Published in Daily Times, November 11th 2018.