Seized wheat sent to procurement centres

Raids continue against hoarders, smugglers

MULTAN:

The Food Department continued its raids against wheat hoarding and smuggling, and confiscated 11,273 metric tons of wheat so far during 421 raids across the Multan division.

According to Food Department sources, departmental teams, along with district administration, were conducting raids to curb wheat hoarding and smuggling, and the confiscated wheat was being sent to the procurement centres concerned.

As many as 23 FIRs had been registered against the mafia involved in hoarding and smuggling of wheat.

Sources said that the department had been working to meet the revised target of procuring about 30 metric tons of extra wheat in order to procure the maximum amount of wheat to counter the food security issue.

The Food Department had already achieved the initial target of wheat procurement.

The wheat procurement target set by the provincial government for Multan Division was about 651,000 metric tons while now it was revised to 686,310 metric tons.

The department has purchased 538,161 metric tons of wheat so far from across the division which is over 78.52 percent of the total.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 24^th, 2023.