“The government is setting up a system through which farmers’ complaints regarding wheat purchase campaign would be relayed to the chief minister,” said Food Minister Bilal Yaseen on Thursday.
He was addressing newsmen after a with Bahawalpur commissioner.
Yaseen said several policy changes had been introduced to facilitate farmers for purchasing wheat.
He said wheat worth Rs105 billion would be purchased in the Punjab. He said in Bahawalpur 652,000 metric tonnes wheat worth Rs19.5 billion would be purchased.
He said the chief minister had directed the authorities to ensure that farmers who reached purchasing centres late would not be sent back.
Food Secretary Muhammad Aslam Kamboh said there were no restrictions on inter-district movement of wheat.
He said in the next two weeks, 70 per cent of the wheat purchase target would be achieved.
He said the role of patwaris in the wheat purchasing procedure had been reduced.
Punjab Food Director Captain (r) Muhammad Usman Younis said a target of 652,000 metric ton wheat purchase had been set for Bahawalpur.
He said 28 centres had been established in Bahawalpur, 22 in Bahawalnagar and 20 in Rahim Yar Khan in this regard. He said wheat purchase across the province would start on April 15 and gunny bags would be issued to farmers from April 10 (Thursday).
He said the government had fixed the price of 40 kg wheat at Rs1,200.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 11th, 2014.