LAHORE, April, 16: The Punjab Food Department on Tuesday unveiled its procurement policy for the year 2002 which, according to Food Director Javed Akhtar, was aimed at “stabilizing price by ending the role of middlemen.”

Briefing newsmen, he said 252 procurement centres had been established throughout the province to purchase 2.5 million tons of wheat at the rate of Rs 300 per 40 kg. Every centre, he said, would be monitored by a six-member committee comprising in charge of the centre, patwari, two members nominated by district and tehsil nazims and two farmers to be nominated by the district food officer.

“The committee will monitor the procurement but not get involved in disbursement of gunny bags,” he said.

The director claimed to have procured 21,500 bales of gunny bags for the season. A minimum 10 bags and a maximum of 200 bags would be given to farmers on the first-come-first-served basis between 7am to 7pm.

The director said those selling up to five tons of wheat would be paid immediately through a nominated bank. Anything above this limit would be paid through cheque. Banks would maintain separate counters for the purpose.

Mr Javed also hinted at further increasing the procurement target by another million if circumstances demanded so. “The government is determined to maintain the support price at every cost. This policy is aimed at pre-empting speculative effect that private sector always creates. Middlemen play havoc with the market through rumours,” he said.

To a question, he said gunny bags which had reached the centres since March 20 would be given to farmers only on the basis of documents or recommendation of six local farmers. An issuance list of gunny bags would be displayed at each centre to check corruption. Twenty-five per cent gunny bags, according to him, had already been distributed.

About current stocks, the director said that around 1.4 million tons of wheat was already lying with the department. The stocks would shoot up to 3.9 million tons by the end of the current procurement drive, if not more. For this purpose, the Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) had been asked to locate markets for the export of the surplus wheat.

The department, he claimed, was able to sell 1.6 million tons in the domestic market outside Punjab and around 200,000 tons abroad.

Another positive development, he said, was increasing role of the private sector.