SIALKOT, March 16: People and their representatives have protested against the shortage of flour in the Sialkot district. They urged the provincial and district governments to ensure the availability of flour on official price. These views were expressed by a group of people and Citizens Rights Forum chief Dr Muneer Butt, Citizens Council president Shaikh Pervaiz Iqbal Soni, MPAs Imran Ashraf (PML-N), Arshad Mehmood Baggu advocate (MMA) and Malik Tahir Akhtar (PPP) while talking to reporters here on Wednesday.

They said there was an immense shortage of flour in Sialkot, Daska, Bhopalwala, Sambrial, Uggoki, Pasrur, Chawinda, Badiana and their surrounding areas.

Hoarders and shopkeepers were selling flour between Rs300 and Rs305 per 20kg bag instead of the fixed official price of Rs240. While retailers were selling the commodity between Rs16 and Rs18 per kilogramme, they added.

Indian traders: A delegation of Indian industrialists, led by Sardar Sukh Dev Singh, on Wednesday visited the Sialkot Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) here. Talking to exporters, Sardar Sukh Dev Singh said that the ongoing confidence building measures (CBMs) would help enhance bilateral trade opportunities.

The Indian trade team lauded the contribution of Sialkot’s businessmen in national economy. The delegation visited some leading industrial units in the city amid tight security while some Indian traders also went to their native houses in the city.

They paid rich tributes to poet-philosopher Allama Muhammad Iqbal.