KARACHI, Nov 19: The Sindh government has decided to reduce the price of 100-kilo wheat by Rs50.

The decision was taken at a meeting, which was chaired by Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah at the CM House, held to review the Sindh Wheat Policy 2012-13 on Monday.

The meeting was attended by Sindh Food Minister Nadir Magsi, Finance Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah, Information Minister Sharjeel Memon, Food Secretary Aftab Ahmed Memon and other officers.

The chief minister said that President Asif Ali Zardari had desired that more wheat be procured and provided to people on a subsidised price.

He said that the government intended to provide relief to the people and also to cultivators so that food production targets continue to be achieved.

The government decided that the existing price of Rs2,850 per 100 kilos of wheat would be reduced to Rs2,800. There would be an overall subsidy of Rs600 million to be borne by the Sindh government due to this reduction, the participants in the meeting were informed.

They were told that the Sindh food department procured 1.290 million tonnes wheat last year.

The food secretary said the releases of wheat to flour mills commenced in September 2012 and currently the balance stock position of wheat in warehouses was 1.09 million metric tonnes.

He added that for disposal of 1.09 million metric tonnes of wheat, physical and fiscal space be made available for the next procurement, as wheat stocks may get damaged due to prolonged storage period, which include exorbitant storage and incidental charges.

Earlier, livestock secretary Syed Abid Ali Shah said that the objective of the department was to create an environment for enhancement of livestock production as vehicle for social security, poverty alleviation, rural development and to contribute towards domestic requirement of food and exportable surpluses.

He gave details of various department/sections and informed the meeting that the embryo transfer technology in animals was being undertaken through public and private partnership, while an amount of Rs6 million was being utilised for non-descriptive low productive cattle.

He said that the central veterinary diagnostic laboratory was functioning at Tandojam with six sub-centres at Karachi, Mithi, Sukkur, Larkana, Dadu and Naushahro Feroze.

Mr Shah said that there was poultry production and research directorates at Karachi, with poultry production units functioning at Hyderabad and Sukkur and in other 13 districts.

He further said that 55 field artificial insemination centres were being established in 10 districts at a cost of Rs344.232 million under the milk and meat production scheme in Sindh.

Besides, three cattle colonies were being established at Umerkot, Naukot and Khairpur at the cost of Rs1.7 billion with district and private participation.

He said that Bhambhore dairy village and processing zone was being established at a cost of Rs2.8 billion for meat animals with public and private participation at Thatta.—APP