PunjabNov 9, 2026

Wheat flour politics! Quota system and waste of national exchequer

سلمان بٹSenior Correspondent

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Wheat flour politics! Quota system and waste of national exchequer

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مستند قدرتی اردو گفتگو • میزبان: اسد اور عظمیٰ • اسٹوڈیو براڈکاسٹ

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Wheat flour politics! Quota system and waste of national exchequer. 📌 Key Highlights & Quick Takeaways: The issue of wheat and flour in Punjab has been an economic and administrative laboratory for the last four decades where every new governme. Every ruler has made the announcement of cheap flour a measure of success, but the fundamental question has always remained in the backgroun. Were the government policies aimed at permanent food security or to gain political advantage by controlling prices temporarily and artificia. The issue of wheat and flour in Punjab has been an economic and administrative laboratory for the last four decades where every new government has claimed reforms, but the underlying problems have remained in place. Sometimes government procurement, sometimes subsidized wheat, sometimes announcements of cheap flour, sometimes cheap bread scheme and sometimes sudden decisions in the name of market liberalization. The result was a heavy financial burden on the national exchequer, the farmer remained uncertain, the consumer complained of expensive flour and the flour milling industry became dependent on government policies. The most worrying aspect of this whole system is that wheat and flour were viewed in terms of political popularity and administrative control rather than economic realities. Every ruler has made the announcement of cheap flour a measure of success, but the fundamental question has always remained in the background as to who is paying the real price of this concession, who is benefiting from it and whether the government always has the financial capacity to run this system permanently. The wheat procurement and export policies of various governments in Punjab have made the food department the "controller" of a large commercial and financial system. The government buys wheat, borrows from banks, bears storage and transportation costs and then releases wheat at discounted rates. According to research by the Pakistan Institute of Development Economics, the revolving debt related to Punjab's wheat operations had reached about 680 billion rupees by 2023, which Mohsin Naqvi and Maryam Nawaz took off with great courage and wisdom. Here the question definitely arises that when the governments were continuously spending huge financial resources, the wheat and flour market Why could not be stable? Were the government policies aimed at permanent food security or to gain political advantage by controlling prices temporarily and artificially? The question must also be raised as to why the full financial details of wheat procurement, storage, interest on loans and subsidized government issuance in the last 15/20 years are not kept before the public regularly. When the expenses are borne by the national treasury, their results should also be accounted for in front of the public. Especially in the last 15 months, how much government wheat was given to which flour mills and how many permits were issued, which flour mills were awarded indiscriminately in the name of flour supply in Lahore, these details must be told to the public because many allegations and concerns have come out regarding this particular period. The government wheat quota system has long been a bone of contention in Punjab's flour milling industry. The main contradiction of this system is that the registered capacity or management formulas are given more importance than the actual production and supply of flour to the market. A flour mill that grinds hundreds of tons of wheat per day, has permanent employees, pays heavy electricity bills and supplies flour to the market daily, has a completely different economic position than a mill that has been closed for a long time or has been running on very limited production. Holding a green license can be a source of undue economic advantage. Today again the demand for uniform government wheat quota is gaining momentum, many of the demanders are really financially weak and want the government to be their "support" for some more time so that they can make some space in the market, but there are many demanders who in the past instead of supplying flour market only sold government wheat to active mills and there are many who supplied government flour less than the stipulated quantity, the question should be asked to these people that what Some flour mills in Punjab were established to produce flour or to obtain government wheat quota? If the main source of income of an industrial unit becomes access to government concessions instead of production, this is not industrial development but a sign of policy failure. Such a system can discourage real investment, perpetuate unproductive capacity and create incentives for misuse of government wheat. However, it is not correct to call every inactive mill corrupt, any accusation must be judged by authentic records of actual grinding, stock and sales. Official Wire Source & Legal Disclaimer Read ▼ 📰 Official Source & Legal Provenance: Express News Documented Wire Record Editorial & Legal Notice: Ingested and verified from official journalistic wire (Express News) under applicable press regulations. Full primary documentary sources are permanently archived.

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