Despite COVID-19 fears, wheat procurement drive to start per schedule

Provincial government made move to avoid shortage amid coronavirus outbreak

LAHORE: Amid growing concerns related to the widespread coronavirus outbreak and to ensure the availability of flour in the province during these difficult times, the Punjab government has decided to stick to the schedule that was earlier fixed for the official wheat-procurement campaign.

To this end, all procurement centres will be made functional on March 25 while the provisions of bags and supplies to farmers will begin from April 5. Arrangements for handwash and hand sanitisers will be made mandatory across all 382 procurement centres to protect workers against the virus.

Speaking to The Express Tribune, the Provincial Minister of Punjab for Food Sami Ullah Chaudhary said that coronavirus is a pandemic, so steps should be taken to tackle the situation before it gets too late.

“Considering the threat of the virus, the federal and provincial governments have taken some unusual steps because millions of farmers visit the procurement centres to sell wheat,” he said. “We have, therefore, decided to commence the wheat procurement drive in accordance with the schedule and it will not be delayed.”

He added that arrangements for taking necessary precaution against the coronavirus will be strictly ensured at all the centres.

Domino effect of Pakistan’s wheat crisis

Sources added that every visitor walking in the procurement centres will have to wash their hands, while the buildings will also be sterilised regularly. Per an estimate, nearly 500,000 people will visit the government centres during the wheat procurement drive. Moreover, the food department has also fixed a target of procurement for all districts of Punjab.

A few constituencies recommended senior government officials to change the schedule of the wheat procurement drive, however, the chief minister and chief secretary of Punjab rejected the idea, saying that to prevent farmers from facing financial issues and to keep the availability of flour plentiful and stable, the schedule of the wheat procurement drive will not be changed.

Food Department Secretary Punjab Waqas Ali Mehmood has issued a circular for safety measures to prevent the spread of coronavirus, according to which, special cleanliness arrangements should be made at all the procurement centres and offices of the food department while disinfectants would also be sprayed regularly.

“Handwashing arrangements would be made both at the entrance and exits of every centre and staffers will be instructed to maintain suitable distance with visitors,” he said. “All the staff members will wear masks while on duty.”

The government has also fixed a procurement target for all districts of Punjab. The biggest target has been fixed for the Bahawalpur Division where 70 procurement centres have been set up along with a procurement target of 753,000 tonnes of wheat. For Multan, the target is 684,000 tonnes of wheat across 45 procurement centres, 650,000 tonnes across 44 procurement centres of Dera Ghazi Khan, 535,000 tonnes across 45 procurement centres in Gujranwala, and 476,000 tonnes in Sahiwal, to name a few.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 18^th, 2020.