LAHORE, July 5: The recently-imposed ban on inter-provincial movement of wheat has not only confirmed farmers’ claims of low production in the Punjab but also exposed flaws in the official procedure for its estimation, farmers claimed while talking to Dawn.

Government officials, however, defended the ban and termed it a “precautionary step necessary to avoid a crisis situation till the end of the year”. But they conceded that production had indeed been low, and the ban was meant to avoid further deterioration of the situation.

Kissan Board Pakistan secretary-general Ibrahim Mughal said that the KBP had always maintained that production was lower than the official claims. The government, instead of accepting flaws in its estimation process, is now taking indirect steps to rectify the situation. The ban on free movement of wheat is one such step. The government was free to do so but it should also take to task those responsible for the debacle, he insisted.

Explaining the rationale behind the restriction, Punjab food secretary Sibghat Mansoor insisted that the term “ban” was a misnomer given that wheat was still being moved out of the province by the Pakistan Agriculture Storage and Services Corporation (Passco). Tenders were still being opened and wheat taken out under various contracts. In these circumstances, it is wrong to claim that wheat movement has been banned.

Besides, there is no ban on flour products. In fact, the government has to restrict free movement to ensure that wheat remains within the province and the country. The province needs 2.55 million to 2.7 million tons of wheat every year. The department only has 2.6 million tons. If movement is not restricted, the crop may go out and the Punjab may end up importing wheat by the end of the season, he said.

Mr Mansoor denied that any illegal or unconstitutional step had been taken as alleged by people from other provinces. The decision was taken after weighing all constitutional and legal implications, he insisted.

On the other hand, the Farmers Associate Pakistan (FAP) said that it opposed any restriction on movement of wheat at the policy level. After all the stockists purchased costly wheat hoping to make some profit later on. Now, the government ban would not only deprive them of well-deserved profits but also deter them from buying wheat next year when the ban might again be imposed. This would ultimately hurt the farmer.

But Punjab director (food) Jawad Rafiq said that the restriction was not meant to hurt any province as being projected by some people. All provinces purchased wheat during the procurement period and the food department was finding it difficult to reach even its revised target of 2.7 million tons. The restriction was only aimed at avoiding a situation in which food security might come under some kind of pressure, he claimed.