LARKANA, Dec 4: Management of the Pakistan Agricultural Storage and Services Corporation (PASSCO) and the Sindh Balochistan Rice Millers and Traders Association (SBRMTA) have agreed to open more than 80 new centres for purchasing IRRI-6 variety of paddy in both provinces within a fortnight.

The general manager (Commercial) of Passco, Khalid Farid, and SBRTMA president Arif Mahisar concluded talks here on Thursday and decided that the Passco would begin lifting IRRI-6 rice from the mills currently purchasing paddy and preparing rice in accordance with the set criterion of the Passco within three days.

The lifting of the piled up stocks of rice from these mills would create space for more buying, said Arif Mahisar while talking to Dawn after holding talks with the GM (Commercial).

The Passco was reluctant to exceed its specification and authority, as it could not deviate from the government’s policy of procurement. Showing flexibility the Passco would declare more than 80 mills as buying centres, said Mahisar

He said that in the first phase the number of mills would be brought to 150. It would facilitate growers and millers to purchase paddy at the rate of Rs700 per 40 kilogram. Rice mills in Sindh and Balochistan on Thursday restarted their routine business after a three-day closure.

He expected speedy procurement within a couple of days as Eid was getting closer while within two days the number of mills would be increased to 100 while rest of the mills would enter into agreement with the Passco after Eid.