HYDERABAD, March 12: A shift in the food department’s wheat distribution policy from ‘liberal’ to ‘quota-specific’ one continues to make people suffer in terms of availability and cost.

Introduced in December last year, the quota system created much unrest among chakki owners, who started accusing the food department particularly its certain officials of corruption, unjustifiably slashing their individual quota, selling away stocks of subsidised wheat meant for them in open market illegally and other wrongdoings. The food department, however, continues to defend the new policy saying that mill-owners and chakki owners had been taking undue advantage of the liberal policy by acquiring much higher quantities of wheat than their processing capacity and illegally selling away the surplus stocks to make profits.

Over the past three months, consumers have been paying Rs4 to Rs4.50 extra per kilogram of wheat flour offered by chakki owners, who argue that they are not getting the required quantity of wheat from the food department for grinding and thus relying heavily on open market, where wheat is costlier.

The fresh wheat crop has started arriving in market now but since initial stocks have a little higher moisture content, millers and chakki owners avoid buying it.

Sindh produced around 3.664 million tonnes of wheat in the 2012 crop season. This year, farmers’ guess is that production might drop as lands to be used for wheat-sowing remained occupied by sugarcane crop due to belated start of cane crushing by mills. According to a market dealer, the old wheat crop is selling at Rs3,200 per 100 kilograms as against the fresh crop rate of Rs3,000.

Chakki owners had been purchasing the old crop wheat at Rs3,500 to Rs3,600 per 100 kilogram until recently, apparently due to a shortage believed to be created by the implementation of the quota-specific policy.

Chakki owners’ concern is that given its population, Hyderabad district, which consists of four talukas, needs 150,000 wheat bags (weighing 100kg each) per month but under the quota policy it is receiving 55,000 bags a month. Initially, the quota was fixed at 27,000 bags but the department had to increase it to 55,000 bags following strong protests by chakki owners, who claimed they were facing losses and consumers were suffering on account of an artificial shortage and resultant increase in prices.

Atta Chakki Owners Social Welfare Association President Javed Qureshi says he has got information through his sources that the overall quota for the district may be reduced to 27,000 bags again in a few days.

But Sindh Food Director Talib Magsi rejects the apprehension. He also insists that the current quota policy will remain unchanged. “We had to shift to the quota policy after coming to know that (subsidised) wheat is sold by millers and chakki owners. It is for the first time that chakki owners have approached the food department to get wheat stocks. We will supply them wheat until March 15 and this year wheat crop has already been delayed,” he said.

But Mr Qureshi recalls that they did get wheat supply on March 15 last year, too.

There are reports that food department is issuing challans for supply of wheat and some quarters among the stakeholders allege favouritism on the part of some corrupt officials. The reports suggest that when affected chakki owners raise a hue and cry, the situation aggravates and heated arguments erupt between them and the District Food Controller, Masood Siddiqui. “I am just being blackmailed by representatives of chakki owners who want the department to supply stocks for non-functional chakkis and dispose of the stocks in the open market,” he claimed.

He said: “We have stopped issuing challans to around 40 to 42 chakkis which, according to our information, are non-functional,” he said.

Under the quota policy, 40 wheat bags per stone per month are given to each unit. The quota was increased to 90 bags last month. Food officials verify the capacity and daily grinding at a unit through its electricity consumption of each chakki. This also helps them identify the non-functional units.

Chakki owners criticise DFC as far as the issue of non-functional chakkis is concerned. Mr Qureshi apparently raises a question. He argues that one stone grinds 16 bags (100kg each) in eight hours and the number of stones at every unit varies. “After exhausting its allocated quota of 90 bags, a unit will have to remain idle and it may then be declared ‘non-functional’,” he says.

According to DFC Mr Siddiqui, assessment of electricity consumption at chakkis in February indicates that chakki owners did grind their allocated quota of wheat and sold flour at the prescribed rate. “I am satisfied though in the last week of Feb, flour prices had recorded an increase and it is up to the administration to control the hike. But admittedly rates of flour in Jan had really sky-rocketed,” he said.

Mr Qureshi’s contention is that as per his information food department supplied 470,000 bags in Jan 2013 to the Sukkur region but only 220,000 bags to Hyderabad. Talib Magsi disputes this figures too, claiming that “there is no disparity”, adding that Hyderabad was provided 4,108 tonnes of wheat out of which 4,033 tonnes was delivered to chakkis and 75 tonnes was saved.

“We have exhausted our stocks at the Hyderabad grain silos and now we are supplying wheat from Bholari silos in Jamshoro,” he said.

The chakki owners association has sent a representation to the chief minister and the DFC has issued a show cause notice to the association. “These people seek to malign my and my department’s credibility,” he said.

In reply to a question, the DFC admitted that he couldn’t issue such a notice until there was a violation of licence by its holder.