SUKKUR: A large number of growers held a demonstration outside the press club in Khanpur Mahar on Monday in protest against the food department’s failure to supply them gunny bags.

The protesters led by Maulvi Abdul Ghafoor Gadani, Abdul Waheed Gadani, Umed Ali Siyal and others complained to journalists that the food department had set up five centres in Khanpur Mahar, Shah Pur Mahar, Rani Har, Bhagsar and Sardar Garh of Ghotki district for procurement of wheat but the centres had not so far provided gunny bags to growers and peasants of the areas concerned.

They said the food inspector who had been made responsible for all the five centres had allegedly sold thousands of bags to the traders of Punjab at the rate of Rs300 per bag. Despite repeated complaints against the injustice, the food department was not ready to listen to them, they said.

They demanded the higher authorities should take notice of the misappropriation of gunny bags and ensure genuine growers and peasants received the sacks. If it was not done, they would stage strong protests, they warned.

Published in Dawn, April 25th, 2017