Milk sellers announce strike on 27th

LAHORE
The Milk Sales and Suppliers Association of Punjab announced suspension of supplies and a shutdown strike across the province on August 27, against what they claimed government officials’ illegal acts to harm their business.
Addressing a press conference at the Lahore Press Club on Monday, association officials Ch Fayaz, Dr Imran and others said that if the government did not accept their justified demands, in the second phase they would go on strike and suspend the milk supply across the province for an indefinite period.
However, they were unable to tell their plan about what they will do with the milk of they stop the supplies and sales across the province. Daily loose milk sale in Lahore is almost 5 million litre alone and the suspension of the supply will create serious problems for citizens. The suppliers and sellers do not have capacity to store much quantity of milk. Suspension of sales and supplies milk will adversely affect milk producers as the only option left with the suppliers is to not lift milk from producers to make their strike successful.
The Suppliers Association claimed that due to some scrupulous elements in their trade, good people were being victimised. They said few sellers were also overcharging for milk but a majority of them were selling it in the city at the DCO notified price of Rs 65 per litre. They demanded the government to adopt a proper procedure of milk checking, notify unbiased and competent independent laboratories for milk testing, and give the right of cross-laboratory checking to them as well. They claimed that their milk worth million of rupees was being wasted on a daily basis due to a wrong testing mechanism of mobile labs. They asked the government to provide them with interest-free soft loans for the purchase of chillers and generators.
They alleged government officials concerned did not listen to their complaints. They demanded formation of a committee of experienced persons of the milk sector with minimum 10-year experience to resolve their issues. The committee should evolve SOPs for the sector with their consultation, they added.
Meanwhile, Once again a big showdown between the Punjab Food Authority (PFA) and loose milk providers and suppliers is expected on August 27 (Thursday) in the provincial metropolis.
PFA sources said milk suppliers had distributed pamphlets for a strike in the city on August 27. According to the pamphlets, milkmen will gather at Thokar Niaz Baig and march towards The Mall. Sources claimed that the milkmen had a plan to unload milk filled tankers outside the Punjab Assembly in protest against the raids and checking of PFA.
The sources said following the raids and checking of PFA, the milk suppliers had changed their routes and timings of entering the city. They said one could witness several milk supplying vessels and tankers crossing River Ravi in evening or at night instead of early morning when PFA checked them.
Sources said majority of citizens were consuming highly unhygienic and chemically contaminated milk, which was affecting their health and when PFA started action against them, they started propagating against the authority and its checking methodology. Sources added that the mafia behind milk adulteration was so strong that in past they did not hesitate in giving threats to PFA officials for confiscating adulterated milk.
PFA officials said in past they had often found formalin, a very dangerous chemical, in loose milk. They said daily consumption of milk in Lahore in summer season is around 1.8 million-litre and major portion of the demand was fulfilled by loose milk. They said other chemicals like urea, caustic soda, refined oil especially rancid oil and cheap cooking oil and commonly used detergents were mixed in the milk to increase its shelve life and the traces of adulteration and mixing of hazardous chemicals.
They claimed several milkmen also mixed sewerage water and untreated tap water in the milk to increase its quantity. They said detergents were added to emulsify and dissolve oil in water, giving the frothy solution the characteristic of white colour. They said refined and rancid oil was used as a substitute for milk fat. Caustic soda is added to milk to neutralise the effect of increased acidity, thereby preventing it from turning sour during transport. Urea/sugar is added for levelling the contents of solid-not-fat (SNF) as are present in the natural milk.
Earlier, milkmen and suppliers of milk had protested against PFA and its raids. A number of citizens said they were concerned over the ongoing battle and PFA should introduce solid ways to ensure quality checking of milk.