BAHAWALPUR: The Kissan Board of Pakistan (KBP) has alleged that the food department has cancelled the 40 per cent quota of gunny bags reserved for wheat growers from areas falling within Cholistan and other agricultural areas of the district.

This has irked the growers of Tailwala, Kudwala, Yazman, Head Rajkan and Shahiwala procurement centres of the district, it said.

KBP Senior Vice President Jam Hazoor Bakhsh and Media Coordinator Asim Akhtar claimed that the quota had been fixed about four years ago and was previously being given to farmers of the said areas. But, this year, they alleged, the food department cancelled it following which the affected growers protested.

They said MPA Dr Waseem Akhtar had taken up the issue with the local divisional and district administration, which restored the 40pc quota for Cholistani growers, but even then the food department did not implement it.

Resultantly, they claimed, they were forced to dispose of their produce at throwaway prices to middlemen and commission agents in the open market as time was running out for selling it at procurement centres. They threatened that if they did not get justice they would take to the streets.

Bahawalpur division Deputy Director (Food) Chaudhry Muhammad Ajmal denied that there was a 40pc reserved gunny bags quota for the growers of Cholistan, adding that people from abovementioned areas had already availed up to 55pc quota of gunny bags from the food department.

He said he was in Karachi at the moment to acquire gunny bags and upon his return he would look into the demands of the KBP.

However, District Food Controller (DFC) Tanveer Ahmed Warraich told Dawn that although there was no reserved quota of gunny bags for Cholistan, he still visited Yazman to sort out the matter with the farmers so that the wheat procurement campaign was not affected.

ANNIVERSARY: The Bahawalpur Suba Mahaz on Monday observed the death anniversary of two workers, who were shot dead by police during a demonstration at Farid Gate on this date in 1970 while demanding provincial status for Bahawalpur.

The group’s Information Secretary Akram Ansari said the leaders at a meeting here vowed to continue the struggle for restoration of separate provincial status for Bahawalpur and paid tribute to the workers, Hafiz Muhammad Shafiq and Muhammad Azim Dadpotra, for their sacrifices in 1970.

Published in Dawn, April 25th, 2017