Flour crisis persists in Balochistan

QUETTA: Flour crisis continues in Balochistan for past three weeks, with the mill owners blaming the provincial government for failing to procure the required wheat this year, ARY News reported on Sunday.

According to details, the prices of flour have skyrocketed in Quetta and other parts of Balochistan while the commodity was not available in most shops across the province. Meanwhile, a 20-kg bag of flour was being sold from Rs2,380 to Rs2,500.

Earlier on September 13, flour mill owners have blamed the provincial government for the ongoing flour crisis in the province, alleging that the food department failed to procure wheat according to the requirement for this year.

Pakistan Flour Mills Association (PFMA) Balochistan chapter representatives said there was a huge gap between the demand and supply which created the crisis.

They said flour mill owners were being blamed for the crisis, while in reality, the provincial government has imposed an inter-provincial and inter-district ban on the transportation of wheat during the harvesting season.

It is pertinent to mention here that the death toll from flash floods triggered by heavy rains has reached 299 in the province. The spokesperson of the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) confirmed that the death toll in Balochistan floods reached 299 including 136 men, 73 women and 90 children.

At least 181 persons including 92 men, 40 women and 49 children were injured in rain-related incidents across Balochistan while more than 65,000 houses were partially or fully damaged.