K-P flour millers warn of protest

Say govt policies compelling mill owners to dismantle units

PESHAWAR: Owners of flour mills in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa on Tuesday threatened to launch a phased protest across the province unless the provincial food department starts releasing wheat to their mills by October 25.

Addressing a joint news conference at the Sarhad Chamber of Commerce of Industry (SCCI) in Peshawar on Tuesday, Pakistan Flour Mills Association— Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (PFMA) Chapter Chairman Mohammad Iqbal lamented that wheat supply to flour mills in Punjab had started from August 19 but mills in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) have yet to start work.

He termed the provincial food department’s reluctance to release wheat to mills a part of the government’s ‘anti-labour’ and ‘industry-hostile’ policy.

The PFMA provincial chief claimed that around 130,000 metric tonnes of wheat are currently available in government granaries which could fulfill the province’s food requirements for the next 45 days.

“K-P’s total wheat demand is about 4.4 million metric tonnes against the province’s production of 1.2 million metric tonnes,” Iqbal said, adding that the flour industry is currently receiving just 2,000 metric tonnes of wheat against a demand of 6,000 metric tonnes daily, jeopardizing the availability of flour to people on subsidized rates.

“Over 50 per cent flour mills had already closed down in K-P, while the government policy was compelling rest of owners to dismantle their mills, which will bring negative of the local economy as well as trigger unemployment in the province,” Iqbal warned.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 16^th, 2019.