SHIKARPUR, Jan 12: Wheat flour dealers of the district were selling the commodity at Rs24-25 per kilogramme in defiance of the government price of Rs 16 to Rs17.25.

When contacted some of the dealers said that they cannot sell the commodity at the government's fixed price because they were purchasing it from flour mills on high rates.

A visit of the flour mills, chakkis, district food controller office, market committee, grain merchants, flour dealers, shopkeepers and consumers in the district said that the main cause of flour crisis was shortage of wheat, which occurred after the government allowed the private sector to export it during the Rabi season and a huge quantity of wheat was exported, while the government failed to achieve the target of procurement of 7,000 tons of wheat as only 6,100 tons of it could be purchased during the Rabi season of 2007 in the district.

The sources said that a good quantity of wheat was smuggled to neighbouring province of Balochistan and Afghanistan. This caused shortage of wheat in the open markets. Whereas at present there are 15,000 bags containing 100kg per bag (1,500 tons) were available in the godowns of district food department for further supply to flour mills and chakkis.

Sources at district food controller office said that at present (2,000 bags) 200 tons of wheat was lying with private sector for disposal in the open market at Rs800 to Rs825 per 40kg.

There are three flour mills and about 27 chakkis in the district which were being supplied 2000 tons of wheat per month. However, the flour mills and atta owners are demanding 3000 tons of wheat per month to meet the demand of flour in the district.

Haji Nisar Ahmed Memon, president Anaj Mandi Food Grain Commission Agents Association, Rice Mill Owners Association Shikarpur and all Small Traders Association Shikarpur, Bhagwandas, former vice chairman and the member of Pakistan Flour Mills Association Larkana region and Israr Ahmed Soomro, acting president of Atta Chakki Owners Association Shikarpur, suggested that the government should ban the transportation of wheat from the district, cancel the licences of wholesalers and stop the supply of wheat to closed flour mills and atta chakkis, keep a strict check and balance on quality of atta and utilisation of wheat supplied by food department to flour mills and chakkis and sale of flour to dealers.

The officials claimed that 1,800 bags containing 10kg of atta were being supplied to the utility stores in city and the district daily as per demand of Utility Stores Corporation from Awan flour mills which was the approved contractor of the corporation.

RALLY: A large number of writers, scholars, poets, journalists, social workers, notables and children took out a candlelight rally and held a demonstration to mark the martyrdom of PPP chairperson, Benazir Bhutto, here on Friday night. The rally was led by Zubair Soomro and other senior writers and journalists.