Soaring wheat prices trigger flour crisis in RY Khan

A sharp increase in wheat prices has pushed flour prices to record levels in Rahim Yar Khan and other parts of South Punjab, triggering a growing crisis for consumers as subsidised government flour has virtually disappeared from the market.

According to market sources, the price of wheat in the open market has climbed to between Rs4,500 and Rs4,600 per 40kg, forcing flour mill owners to raise the retail price of flour to Rs130 per kg.As a result, a 10kg bag of flour is now selling for around Rs1,300, placing an additional burden on already struggling households.

The government's subsidised flour scheme is facing severe disruption, with official prices of Rs910 for 10kg and Rs1,820 for 20kg hardly available outside Lahore.

In Rahim Yar Khan and several other districts of South Punjab, consumers are being compelled to buy costly private-brand flour, which is increasingly beyond the purchasing power of ordinary citizens.

Representatives of the Flour Mills Association said that wheat stocks held by traders and the public had largely been exhausted, leading to supply shortages.

They complained that flour mills in Rahim Yar Khan, a district with a population of about five million, were not receiving their due share of government wheat.

The association added that around 80 per cent of mills have been operating at a loss for the past two years due to rising costs and an unfair distribution system.

The association urged the Punjab government to immediately release 20,000 to 22,000 tonnes of wheat daily from its 1.5 million-tonne reserves between January 20 and March 20 to stabilise prices.

They also appealed to Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz to intervene to ensure fair distribution. District Food Controller Jam Muhammad Shoaib said efforts were under way to ensure adequate supply in line with the chief minister's vision, though bakers complained that government flour was scarce and of poor quality.