In a major update, the national government has implemented a sudden prohibition on the import and export of wheat and its derivatives. This decision is outlined in two official notifications which revise both the Import Policy Order and the Export Policy Order.
Decision came after a scandal arose in May that interim government had imported wheat despite country having surplus stocks.
Remember, flour mills, atta chakki association is already on strike against the imposition of withholding tax on wheat. This is creating shortage in market, according to today’s report, price of flour is increased in country.
PM Shehbaz Sharif also suspended the Pakistan Agricultural Storage and Services Corporation (PASCO) managing director and general manager procurement due to “negligence and non-compliance with the PM’s instructions regarding the use of technology in the wheat procurement process.”
He also ordered a third-party audit of PASCO stock and additional procurement of 0.4 million metric tons (MMT) of wheat “transparently and efficiently.”