MULTAN: People are facing problems due to artificial shortage of flour here.
The people said that flour was not available in some parts of the city even at inflated rates. They claimed that shopkeepers had hoarded flour to create artificial shortage. They complained that the district administration was not taking interest to control black marketing of flour in the city as shopkeepers were selling flour at high rates. The people said that the City District Administration should take serious action against hoarders and profiteers.
The white flour was not available at majority of utility stores, they claimed. The City District Administration had fixed Rs 40 per kilogram for white flour and Rs 800 for 20kg flour bag, they told. However, the flour mills were selling flour to shopkeepers at Rs 58 per kilogram and 20kg bag was available at Rs 1,160 instead of Rs 800 due to poor control on prices, they lamented.
The shopkeepers and hoarders were forcing the citizens to purchase 20kg flour bag at Rs 1,200 instead of Rs 800, the citizens complained.
Officials of the City District Government said that Deputy Commissioner Amir Khattak had taken exclusive measures to prevent from artificial shortage of flour. The commissioner had established 61 temporary trolley stations in the city at different chowks, they told. They were bound to park their trolleys and sell flour at government fixed prices, the officials said. They said that focal persons were appointed for each station. They said that 10kg flour bag would be available at Rs 402 at designated stations. The officials said that City District Administration had ensured availability of flour at government fixed prices at 600 shops in the city.
RAHIMYAR KHAN: Citizens are facing problems due to shortage of flour in the city. There are more than 100 main grocery shops in the city and the district administration has nominated 28 grocery stores with the coordination of Karyana Association RYK which would provide different items to the customers at their doorstep on official rates. On Friday, a resident of Gulshan-e-Usman Rana Imtiaz told The News that he had visited almost eight grocery shops in different areas of the city but he could not get flour. Similarly some other citizens also complained about the unavailability of flour at grocery shops.
Senior vice president of Anjuman Karyana Association RYK Maqsood Imran told that there was a shortage of flour. He said that the actual reason of this problem was that flourmills were supplying limited quantity of flour to the grocery shops.
Meanwhile, Rahimyar Khan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (RYKCCI) handed over first consignment of 3,000 ration bags to the district administration. Assistant Commissioner Aitzaz Anjum told that he was checking availability and rates of all grocery items at shops on daily basis.
BAHAWALPUR: People have shown concern over flour shortage in Tehsil Chishtian and other parts of Bahawalnagar district.
On Saturday, there were long queues of poor people to get flour on subsidised rate. Chishtian Assistant Commissioner Sarmad Hussain along with police contingent was present there to control the situation but all steps taken by the police and other security staffers and local administration were futile to control the situation. The people told The News that amid threat of coronavirus, the shortage of flour had added to their troubles. They demanded surplus supply of flour on the sale points to avoid shortage of flour. Similarly, the flour shortage was reported at Bahawalnagar, Haroonabad and Fort Abbas.
