ISLAMABAD: The Federation of Pakistan Cham­bers of Commerce and Industries (FPCCI) urged the federal government on Thursday to avoid harassing the private sector for timely importing wheat to bridge the demand-supply gap.

The FPCCI reacted to the government’s claim that the interim setup permitted the private sector to import wheat without a rational justification. The FPCCI supported the private sector’s actions.

FPCCI President Atif Ikram Sheikh has said that wheat support price should continue for the farmers as they need a support mechanism for the guaranteed sale of their crops. However, this financial burden should not be transferred to the people through expensive wheat flour. Saquib Fayyaz Magoon, FPCCI Senior Vice-President and a wheat expert, said thanks to timely imports, there had been no wheat or flour shortage in the past five or six months and that flour prices have been reduced due to adequate imports.

The FPCCI stated that imported wheat costs roughly Rs65 per kg, as opposed to locally produced wheat, which costs Rs100 per kg. He noted that consumers saved Rs1.25 trillion, and inflation began to decline.

Mr Magoon stated that the government’s estimates indicate a wheat shortage of 2.5 million tonnes this year, while independent sources put the figure at 3m tonnes. As a result, both the Ministry of National Food Security and the Cabinet’s Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) enabled the private sector to import wheat without any subsidies.

Published in Dawn, May 3rd, 2024