KARACHI, Sept 17: With a severe shortage of flour persisting in most parts of the country, consumers here had to pay on Monday Rs18 for a kilogram of the regular No2.5 flour, Rs20 for the fine and Rs22 for chakki while a 10 kg bag of fine flour was selling for Rs200.

Wheat price also remained high at Rs1,500 per 100 kg bag while retailers charged Rs1,550. There was no flour at many retail outlets and consumers were seen moving from one shop to the other. And a few retailers who had some stocks were demanding even higher prices.

This is perhaps for the first time in country’s history that flour has become almost a rare commodity during Ramazan.

In view of the crisis, the governments of Punjab and Sindh increased the supply of wheat to flour mills by at least 50 per cent on Monday. However, there was no increase in the supply of wheat to mills in the NWFP.

Millers rule out any immediate decline in prices but say that the increase in wheat supply to mills may keep the rate at the present level during the holy month.

Chairman of the Pakistan Flour Mills Association (PFMA), Punjab zone, Haji Maqsood Ahmed, told Dawn from Lahore that 640 mills in Punjab would now get 17,000 tons of wheat, compared to 11,000 tons received last week. However, the millers required 20,000 to 22,000 tons a day to meet the demand.

The increase in supply from the food department may help keep prices from increasing further during Ramazan . He hoped the flour prices would gradually came down.

Retail mill flour price in Punjab had been set at Rs 295 per 20 kg bag, while wholesale price had come down to Rs 285.

He blamed the increase in wheat price on government’s decision to allow exports a few months back. About 440,000-450,000 tons of wheat had been sold abroad before the export was suspended. He said that government’s wrong estimate of the crop size of 23.5 million tons for this season also created confusion in the market and played a role in pushing up the price.

He said the total wheat reserves till September 7 were 4.7 million tons, 2.64 million tons in Punjab, 610,000 tons in Sindh, 86,000 tons in NWFP and 34,000 tons in Balochistan, while Passco had 1.319 million tons. However, the current stocks of wheat are 1.5 million tons less compared with last year.

Chairman PFMA, NWFP Zone, Mohammad Naeem Butt, told Dawn from Peshawar that some 150 out of 200-250 mills in the province were receiving 1,500 tons a day, including the quota for eight Fata areas. Out of the 1,500 tons, Peshawar gets 1,290 tons and Fata 210 tons.

He said that in 1999-2000, the mills were getting 15,000 tons a day and over the past four years 1,500 tons a day.

“We are literally at the mercy of Punjab for both wheat and atta,” Mr Butt said, adding that because the very low quota for the NWFP, mills had become non-operative. He said a 20 kg bag of mill flour now sold at Rs380-390, compared with Rs290 last week, while a bag of 20kg fine flour is selling for Rs 400 compared with 320-330. The federal government, he said, should work out a plan for distribution of wheat in accordance with the province’s requirement so that prices of flour and wheat remained uniform all over the country.

Chairman PFMA, Sindh Zone, Chaudhry Ansar Jawed said that the wheat supply by the Sindh food department to millers had been increased to 153,000 tons per month from Monday as against 106,000 tons last week. Some 70-80 mills in Karachi will get 46 per cent of the total for the whole of province. But, he said, the monthly demand of mills in Sindh ranged between 300,000 and 325,000 tons. The 150 mills in Sindh are taking 90 per cent of wheat from Punjab.

“It is a good step but it will not make any impact on prices overnight. Prices of flour are likely to come down slowly,” he said.

Wheat price had touched Rs 1,600 last week while it was Rs1,330 two weeks back. In July, flour No. 2.5, fine flour and chakki flour were selling at Rs 16, Rs 18 and Rs 19 per kg, respectively. The 10 kg fine flour bag was available at Rs 160 in July.

He said the decision to import wheat will affect the hoarders initially and they would release the stocks. However, he claimed that wheat prices in international markets are coming down.

Traders said that some exporters had sufficient stocks in hands and they were releasing in the market at enhanced rates.

Market sources said that some retailers had also adopted a wait-and-see attitude and were holding on to their stocks to mint money by creating a shortage.