LAHORE: The Flour Mills Association on Tuesday announced to end the strike after their meeting with Punjab Food Minister Abdul Aleem Khan, who, on behalf of the government, assured them of allaying their concerns on a priority basis.
A 10-member delegation of Flour Mills Association headed by Central Chairman Asim Raza and Provincial President Abdul Rauf Mukhtar agreed that flour prices would not increase till Eid. It was also decided that the district administration would not raid the flour mills while the Food Department would have access to these mills.
Aleem Khan said that flour mills would be allowed for 7 days wheat storage instead of 72 hours. He said that permission in this regard was being given but the flour mills would have to declare their stocks.
He telephoned the Punjab chief secretary during the meeting and asked him to convey the new instructions up to the division and district level. Aleem said that this year wheat was being bought but intends to create a new mechanism for the affairs of flour mills for which the concerned stakeholders should be on the same page.
He said that for this purpose a joint meeting of the Food Department and Flour Mills Association will be held immediately after Eid. The minister clarified that the government’s job should be to regulate and facilitate flour mills instead of procurement.
He added that a new strategy would be worked out for the procurement of wheat and “bar dana” in the coming years.
Aleem asked the officials of the Flour Mills Association to formulate their proposals in the light of which the next road map will be designed. The meeting decided that after Eid, flour mills of KP will also be given wheat but KP Food Department.
