Govt top priority is to control wheat, flour prices: PM

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan said that the first priority of the government was not only to ensure adequate availability of wheat as per the requirements but also to control the prices of wheat and flour.

The prime minister directed all the provincial chief secretaries to ensure a zero tolerance policy on wheat smuggling and stockpiling. To this effect, Prime Minister Imran Khan chaired a meeting on measures in relation to reducing wheat and flour prices. The meeting was attended by Minister for Planning Asad Umar, Minister for National Food Security Syed Fakhar Imam, Minister for Economic Affairs Makhdoom Khusro Bakhtiar, Finance Advisor Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh, Trade Adviser Abdul Razak Dawood, finance secretary and other senior officials.

Chief secretary Punjab, chief secretary Sindh and chief secretary Khyber Pakhtunkhwa attended the meeting through video link while Financial Adviser Dr Hafeez Shaikh briefed the meeting on the decisions taken in consultation with the provincial governments to meet the needs of wheat and flour as well as to reduce their prices. Speaking on the occasion, the prime minister emphasized that his first priority in this regard was the protection of the poor so that they did not have to bear extra burden. The prime minister, while commenting on the decisions taken in consultation with the provincial governments to reduce the prices of wheat and flour, directed that immediate steps be taken to ensure the implementation of these decisions as soon as possible.

At the same time, the prime minister directed that a long-term strategy should be formulated keeping in view the needs of the country so that there would be no difficulty in meeting the needs of the future.