Rates of all qualities of wheat flour in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have touched a new peak in two weeks, due to shortage of wheat stock and high prices of flour in Punjab. In a visit to local wholesale market in Peshawar, it was noted that a 20kg bag of high quality superfine flour was shot up at Rs 860, which is being sold at Rs 810 in a few days ago.
The survey further revealed that brown-flour weighting 20kg, is available at Rs 830 against the Rs 790 in the market. A 85kg flour bag was also being sold at Rs 4,000 with an increase of Rs 150 per bag, while 40kg bag being sold at Rs 1,660 against the previous rate of Rs 1,580, according to survey conducted by Business Recorder here on Friday.
Wholesaler and dealers said that flour is available at huge quantity in the market but at high rates due to surging prices in Punjab. “In the coming months there will be no local stock of wheat on the open market and millers would rely on wheat from the government stock, which is not being released as per fixed quota,” said Mohammad Anees Ashraf, Chairman Pakistan Flour Mills Association, KP while talking to this scribe.
He said currently the provincial food department is releasing about 2,000 metric ton of wheat to local mills, against 11,000 to 12,500 per day, which is only 20 percent of the fixed quota. Retailers attributed the sudden surge in prices to phenomenal increase in power tariffs and petroleum products’ prices, while the consumers appear highly frustrated with these new developments quite contrary to Regarding the emergence situation in KP, he said that provincial government should take serious notice of this rising crisis of flour in the province, and to release wheat to local flour millers as per fixed quota to them. He also urged the Federal Minister for Food Security and Research, Sikandar Hayat Khan Bosan, to issue orders for release of wheat stock under fixed quota and rates for KP local millers as to avoid any further shortage.
