LAHORE, Nov 18: The Punjab Food Department will get additional 100,000 tons of wheat from Pakistan Agriculture Storage and Service Corporation (Passco) in order to ease flour supply situation in the province.

Department officials on Sunday told Dawn they had already lifted 98,000 tons of wheat out of its earlier allocation of 150,000 tons. With additional 100,000 tons coming to its stocks, it would have over two million tons for the rest of the season.

“The outgoing chief minister had approved the summary for additional purchase from the Passco,” said an official.

Interestingly, Sindh and Balochistan have still not started lifting their quotas allotted by the Passco. This situation increases pressure on Punjab’s meagre stocks. “The trouble is that other provinces have long stopped subsidising flour, which makes them high-price markets as compared to Punjab, and encourages smuggling. This movement of flour puts pressure on Punjab supplies and exchequer – it ends up subsidising flour for almost the entire country,” he said.

Punjab has been arguing with the federal government that it should either pick up the subsidy bill or let it ban the flour movement. It does not want to pick the first option because it does not have money and cannot opt for the latter for the fear of pressure on federation. The situation, he said, would go on as long as the federal government did not resolve the conflict.

Meanwhile, the flour situation in Punjab has eased a bit after the relentless crackdown by the Food department, but supplies in smaller bags, especially of 10kg, still remains a problem.

About lingering crisis of small packing, Muhammad Shabir — a trader from the city — said bigger packing was more in demand outside the province. The bigger packing allows the millers to prove that they are grinding all the wheat, and still supply it at the point of their choice.

“During the last two weeks, the Food department went after the mills ensuring grinding of all wheat they got from official godowns. It devised a mechanism of tracking wheat to retailers and checking electricity bills ensuring the quantity of grinding. It gave the millers a margin to pack the flour in bigger bags and sent them where it was more profitable,” he said.

The departmental officials conceded the problem and promised to ensure smaller bags in the city and the province.