BAHAWALPUR: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) claimed to have arrested five suspects on charge of involvement in corruption for issuance of passports in Rahim Yar Khan.

FIA Deputy Director Adnan Lohani identified the suspects as Nafees Ahmed, Khalid Mehmood, Muhammad Sajjad Ashraf, Shahid and Irfan. He said the suspects used to work as the agents of the officials of the passport office and collected bribe on their behalf for issuance of passports to the applicants. He said the applicants were forced to pay Rs1,500 to Rs2,000 each in advance. If the applicants declined to pay the bribe, their applications were rejected on flimsy grounds and they were refused passports.

On receiving complaints, an FIA team carried out a raid, arrested the suspects and shifted them to the FIA lockup in Bahawalpur.

SUGAR: On the special initiative of the Punjab government for Ramazan, the Ashraf Sugar Mills has set up 10 centres of cheap sugar sale to the consumers in two districts of Bahawalpur and Lodhran.

According to mills’ PRO Rizwan Ahmed, the centres had started functioning at Farid Gate, Fowara Chowk and Dring Stadium in the city and Kahror Pucca in Lodhran among other places for selling sugar at subsidised rates of Rs95 per kg instead of at the rate of Rs110 to Rs115 in the open market.

WHEAT: The food department has fixed the target of 7.80 million tonne for wheat procurement from the Bahawalpur region.

According to food deputy director Adnan Farid, 72 procurement centres had been opened in three districts of the division for the farmers to sell their produce at government fixed price of Rs3,900 per 40kg.

ARRESTED: Three more persons were arrested while attempting to collect wheat flour bags on forged CNICs at the Dring Stadium.

According to an official handout, the three suspects were carrying original CNICs of 22 persons. They were handed over to the police deployed at the centre. Later, the police registered a first information report against them and sent them behind the bar.

It may be recalled that two persons were arrested in Uch Sharif on Wednesday while attempting to collect free lour bags with fake CNICs.

Published in Dawn, March 31st, 2023