MUZAFFARABAD: The Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) government has urged Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to intervene over the continued supply of imported wheat allegedly declared unfit for human consumption, warning that the situation could trigger public unrest in the region.

Official sources told Dawn on Wednesday that the AJK authorities had conveyed serious concern to the federal government over the quality of imported wheat being supplied through the Pakistan Agricultural Storage and Services Corporation (Passco), and sought its immediate replacement with locally produced wheat of fair average quality (FAQ) standard.

AJK procures around 300,000 tonnes of wheat annually to meet its food security requirements. Under a 2023 decision of the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC), Passco has since been supplying wheat to AJK in a 50:50 ratio of indigenous and imported stocks — unlike Gilgit-Baltistan, which receives 75pc local and 25pc imported wheat.

According to AJK officials, the imported wheat - procured in 2022 by the Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) from Ukraine - has exceeded its prescribed shelf life and developed an unpleasant odour.

Laboratory assessments conducted by the National Institute of Health (NIH) and the Pakistan Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (PCSIR) reportedly found that the commodity did not meet food safety standards.

Officials maintained that flour milled entirely from the imported wheat was unsafe for human consumption. As a temporary measure, the AJK Food Department had been blending imported stocks with local wheat to maintain minimum quality standards.

Despite repeated representations to the Ministry of National Food Security and Research and Passco over the past three years, officials said no remedial action had been taken.

Published in Dawn, February 19th, 2026