HYDERABAD, March 31: The price of flour is likely to go up following the announcement of an increase in the wheat procurement price by Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani.

Atta Chakki Owners Association (ACOA) Hyderabad, has submitted a representation here on Monday to the district nazim for review of flour’s retail and wholesale prices fixed by the district government.

It is learnt that food department has already exhausted its wheat stock and it is about to begin procurement of wheat by setting up procurement centres.

Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani has raised the price for growers to Rs625 from Rs510 earlier fixed by the caretaker government.

“Yes we have submitted an application to district nazim to review the rate of flour because now we are purchasing wheat from open market at Rs1620 per 100 kilogram. When the rate was earlier fixed by district government on March 28, it was available at Rs1450 per 100 kg and that rate was applicable only up to April 8”, said vice president of the ACOA Haneef Rajput.

The district government, after holding consultations with flour dealers of the city and association office-bearers, had fixed the rate of flour at Rs19 per kilogram at retail and Rs18.20 per kilogram as wholesale. It took the initiative when complaints were made that flour was again being sold at Rs20 or so although the government had fixed it at Rs16.50 per kilogram for end users.

Market sources said that currently 100 kg wheat is available at Rs1620 which brings its per kg price to Rs16.20. Chakki owners add another Rs 3.50 as labour, bardana and travelling cost that takes the flour’s wholesale price to Rs 19.80 per kilogram and when another 0.80 or 0.90 paisa are added, the retail cost of flour would shot up to Rs20.50 or Rs21 per kg.

Although the rate was to be reviewed after April 8, but given this statistics the chakki owners are requesting district government to review the rate right now to enable them to recover their cost.

According to a food department official, the wheat stocks for supply to chakki and mill owners have been exhausted and now they were preparing to procure wheat from market.

He claimed that even normally the government’s wheat was supplied to chakki and mill owners till March 15 and its not a new phenomenon. He, however, claimed that rate of new wheat crop that is available in open market now is Rs15.62 per kg (1562 per 100 kg) thus the rate of flour was bound to shoot up in days to come unless some subsidy was announced for consumers by government as it had done for growers.