GILGIT: The Pakistan Demo­cratic Movement-led federal government and Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf-led Gilgit-Baltistan government on Friday agreed to increase prices of subsidised wheat in the region.

The agreement was reached at a meeting held between Adviser to PM on Kashmir Affairs and Gilgit-Baltistan Qamar Zaman Kaira and Gilgit-Baltistan Chief Minister Khalid Khurshid Khan in Islam­abad, said a press release of GB CM House released on Friday.

Informed sources said the meeting decided to increase the subsidised wheat price in Gilgit-Baltistan by Rs7.50, to Rs20 per kg.

The region’s cabinet would approve the decision to increase the price and the agreement will take effect from May 15.

Subsidised wheat to be sold at Rs20 per kg in GB after Rs7.5 increase

For the release of funds for development, the federal government had demanded the GB government to increase the price of subsidised wheat in GB which the latter did and then federal government released Rs5 billion development funds, the press release said.

Gilgit-Baltistan Finance Minister Javed Ali Manwa and food department officials also attended the meeting.

The federal government will also release another Rs5bn for development budget in the next two days, the press release said.

In the meeting, the federal government was informed by the Gilgit-Baltistan government that without necessary support for the development of the agricultural sector in the region, there are serious challenges to increase subsidised wheat prices.

It demanded the federal government to provide required resources for agriculture development to produce wheat at local level.

Talking to Dawn, Mr Kaira said that it was a mutual decision of the Gilgit-Baltistan government and the federal government to increase subsidised wheat prices to maintain supply of the commodity to the region.

He said it was difficult to maintain the quantity of subsidised wheat supply to Gilgit-Baltistan in the allocated funds as the wheat prices had increased across the country.

Mr Kaira said the federal government had not given any condition to the GB government to release funds for subsidised wheat.

He said the GB cabinet had already decided to increase the subsidised wheat prices in the region and the federal government had agreed to the GB government’s decision.

Mr Kaira said that despite financial crunch, the federal government would continue to support the GB government.

He said the federal government on Friday released Rs5bn for development in GB.

Published in Dawn, May 6th, 2023