SIALKOT, Oct 25: The sale of subsidized flour bags remained suspended for the third consecutive day on Monday in various parts of the Sialkot city, Daska, Bhopalwala , Sambrial, Ugoki, Pasrur, Chawinda, Satrah and Badiana's far-off rural areas due to a short supply by mills.

However, the limited sale of flour continued in most of the urban areas under the supervision of the food department.

Citizens Rights Forum Sialkot Chairman Dr. Muneer Butt told newsmen that the forum had received a number of complaints that some shopkeepers were selling sasta ata at their shops on retail price after purchasing the same from the food department with the alleged malpractice of the authorities concerned in Sialkot, Daska and Pasrur tehsils.

He alleged that various union council Nazims were also selling the subsidized flour to their favourites under a political cover.

He said the poor in the district were unable to benefit from the chief minister's sasta ata Ramazan package as the flour bags had not yet reached to the deserving people due to the alleged slackness of the functionaries concerned. He said the district government and the tehsil municipal administration had failed in making a proper planning regarding the sale of subsidized flour at 37 sale centres.

Meanwhile, the people of Sialkot, Daska, Sambrial and Pasrur's urban areas alleged that no effective steps had been taken by the district government to check the sale of "substandard" sasta ata and it's short-measuring by the mills. They said no-one had ever bothered to check the flour quality.

They alleged that the mills were using last year's rejected and unhygienic wheat for preparing sasta ata. Many people had complained that they were suffering from stomach diseases after using this flour.

They further alleged that the mills were supplying 19kg to 19.5kg flour in each bag instead of 20kg. However, District Food Controller Rohail Butt has denied all these allegations.

The citizens have urged the Sialkot district Nazim and the DCO to take measures for giving relief to the common man.