LAHORE: The Punjab Assembly was told on Wednesday that the provincial government had over one million tonnes of wheat in stock for the next five months as opposition members raised concerns over rising flour prices, delayed development funds and the plight of farmers.

During a post-budget general discussion, lawmakers also debated the timely start of the sugarcane crushing season, alleged fraud in private markets and government expenditure, while Finance Minister Mujtaba Shujaur Rehman presented expenditure figures for the first quarter of the 2026-27 financial year.

The session, presided over by Deputy Speaker Malik Zaheer Iqbal Channar, started two hours behind schedule. Opposition Leader Moin Riaz Qureshi criticised the absence of government members and ministers, saying flour had become expensive but the government appeared unconcerned about public problems.

Responding to questions, Food Safety & Consumer Protection Minister Salma Butt said the government was monitoring wheat stocks and supplies. More than 1.5m bags of wheat arrived in Punjab markets daily, while the government had over 1m tonnes of grain in stock to meet requirements for the next five months, she told the house.

Lawmakers call for timely start of sugarcane crushing, allege fraud in private markets; five ordinances tabled

Sardar Owais Dreshak called for the timely commencement of the sugarcane crushing season, warning that delays could affect preparations for the next wheat crop.

Ms Butt said efforts were under way to ensure that crushing started as early as possible.

Replying to a question by treasury member Amjad Ali Javed, the food minister said the government had cancelled the licences of 90 out of 185 private markets following complaints of fraud against citizens in the name of such markets.

During the post-budget debate, Mr Shujaur Rehman said the provincial government spent Rs833 billion in the first quarter of the 2026-27 fiscal, including Rs589bn on non-development expenditure. Of the total, Rs152bn were spent on salaries, he added.

Treasury lawmaker Rana Ahmad Shehryar referred to development projects and stressed the need for a metro bus service in Faisalabad. He also defended the initiatives taken by Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz.

Opposition MPA Iqbal Khattak, however, complained that his constituency had not received even a single rupee in development funds over the past three years. He said the entire constituency was being made to suffer and wanted to convey the concerns of its residents directly to the chief minister.

The house also took up legislative business during the sitting. Five ordinances, including the Punjab Vagrancy (Amendment) Ordinance 2026 and the Punjab Alternative Dispute Resolution Ordinance 2026, were laid before the assembly.

The Quran Printing and Recording (Amendment) Bill 2026 and the Dramatic and Theatre Performances Bill 2026 were also introduced.

The assembly passed the Societies Registration (Amendment) Bill by a majority vote.

After completion of the agenda, Panel of Chairpersons member Iftikhar Hussain Chhachhar adjourned the session until 2pm on Friday (tomorrow).

Published in Dawn, October 29th, 2026