People complain of wheat flour shortage

MANSEHRA: People have complained about the shortage of wheat flour being supplied by the utility stores and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Food Department separately on subsidised prices.

“The prices of wheat flour have increased to an all-time high and in such a situation, the supply of the commodity at the subsidised price is a relief for the low-income families but there is a shortage of it in the local markets,” Mohammad Ajmal, a buyer, told reporters here on Monday. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had announced the supply of subsidised wheat flour across the Hazara division during his recent visit here.

The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Food Department has also announced to supply the subsidised wheat flour in markets after releasing the wheat quota to millers across the province but it is yet to specify such points where the commodity would be sold. “The utility stores had fixed subsidised price of a 10kg bag at Rs400 and the KP Food Department fixed Rs490 of the same weight bag but because of the shortage, buyers are returning without purchase,” said another resident, Ajmal.

He said that the utility stores should ensure the uninterrupted supply of the subsidised wheat flour on their outlets and points established by it in the district in accordance with the prime minister’s order. The price of a 20kg wheat flour bag has increased and is being sold from Rs1,580 to Rs1,680 in the local markets.