Garhi Khairo remained submerged for almost two months but the flood and food department authorities did not move the bags from the four storage areas in the hope that the flood water would recede.
Due to a shortage of space in government storage facilities, Thull food inspector, Abdul Salam Khoso, stored thousands of wheat bags in a rice mill owned by his friend, Attaullah Khoso.
Media from Thull reported that 4,000 to 5,000 bags have been stolen from the private storage space over the past few days, allegedly on the orders of department officials.
When local journalists questioned the food department on the matter, officials allegedly filled the gap by replacing the stolen bags with stale bags of wheat.
Media sources claim that Abdul Khoso tried to hush up journalists and when that didn’t work, he offered them a fair share to cover up the story.
Abdul Khoso spoke to The Express Tribune and accepted that the wheat bags were shifted into private storage. “The theft issue has been resolved and the bags have been returned,” he said, refusing to comment on who stole the bags.
On the other hand, Jacobabad’s food controller, Chungal Shah, denied the theft but admitted that more than 36,000 bags of wheat were ruined by flood water.
“The bags were not shifted to a safer place because storage areas in Thull and Jacobabad are all full,” he said.
After the government announced that wheat seed and fertiliser will be given to flood-affected farmers free of cost, food department officials allegedly distributed wheat bags and fertiliser on the basis of favouritism. Thull Mukhtiarkar Abdul Malik Khoso was also suspended and then transferred on charges of corruption.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 14t, 2011.
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