HYDERABAD, Feb 11: The Hyderabad Atta Chakki Owners Association has warned that its members will go on strike for an indefinite period if the food department-administered godowns does not supply them clean wheat of the 2006 crop and if the department’s deputy director is not replaced with an honest official.

The association’s president Haji Nawab Ali, general secretary Haji Mohammad Hafeez and joint secretary Mohammad Mehdi told a news conference at the press club on Sunday that the Bulhari wheat godowns had been supplying them highly substandard wheat since December 15, 2006 and the food officials had turned a deaf ear to their complaints. The report of wheat samples from Bulhari godowns sent by the EDO of health for analysis in December last year had declared that the wheat was not fit for human consumption, they said.

Still, the deputy director of food department had not stopped supplying the same contaminated wheat to the flourmills, they said and added that they would not lift the spoiled wheat of 2004 crop.

They accused the deputy director of sending a wrong report to the high officials about the wheat’s condition on the basis of which an order was issued that 70 per cent of the contaminated wheat and 30 per cent of damp wheat spoiled in the heavy rains should be supplied to the flourmills.

They said that the Hyderabad district food department gave 35,000 bags of 2006 crop last week to big roller flourmills after accepting money. Of the total 15,000 bags were given to only one flourmill, they said.

They demanded that the department should supply wheat of 2006 crop to flourmill owners, replace the deputy director and hold an inquiry into the sale of 35,000 bags of good quality wheat to roller flourmill owners.

They complained that they were purchasing good quality wheat from the interior of Sindh at Rs1,210 per bag while the people had to pay Re1 more a kg for the flour made from good wheat.

They distributed the analysis report on the wheat at Bulhari godown, which said that the "samples of the wheat have unacceptable colour, smell and taste, the overall appearance of the sample is not good, it is damaged and does not conform to the standard of food grain of Sindh Pure Food Rules 1965".