Government and opposition lawmakers in the Punjab Assembly on Wednesday jointly questioned Food Minister Salma Butt over wheat policy in Punjab, rising flour prices, thinner official stocks and losses faced by growers.
The exchange came during question hour on food safety and consumer protection. Members focused on the decision not to buy wheat directly from farmers this season, the lack of an announced wheat policy for 2026-27, and the gap between what growers received and what households pay for flour.
What lawmakers put to the minister
Opposition MPA Ijaz Shafi said the minister had accepted that official stocks had run down. He argued the law required the government to keep 3.5 million tonnes in reserve, while flour prices had crossed Rs190 per kilogramme and wheat was selling for around Rs5,500 per maund. Calling wheat imports shameful for an agricultural country, he asked why a wheat policy for the next fiscal year had still not been announced.
Sardar Owais Dreshak said farmers had been ruined by current market handling. He urged a timely start to sugarcane crushing so growers could free land for the next wheat crop, warning that delay could spark another shortage. He said farmers had sold wheat for as little as Rs2,100 per maund, while the commodity was now near Rs5,000 per maund.
Opposition MPA Waqas Man accused the government of breaking a pledge to purchase wheat from growers, saying losses ran into billions of rupees and possibly more. He sought an apology and asked whether the food minister was equipped to manage the province’s agricultural pressures.
Treasury member Zulfiqar Ali Shah pressed for budget funds for a wheat support price and said capacity to buy must be fixed before any rate is announced. If a support price of Rs4,500 per maund were declared, he said, the necessary purchase money must be provided—otherwise the pledge would be empty.
Minister’s reply on stocks and procurement
Ms Butt rejected the charge that supplies had been neglected. She said wheat procurement had been left to the private sector this year, that the government was monitoring the market, and that stocks were enough to meet demand. More than 1.5 million bags of wheat were arriving in Punjab daily, she said, and over one million tonnes were available for the next five months.
The debate also underlined how farm issues can cut across party lines in a house where more than 60 per cent of members are widely believed to come from the landed gentry. Protecting growers and the rural economy remains a shared concern on the assembly floor.
Private markets and licence cancellations
Treasury MPA Amjad Ali Javed asked what had been done about operators who allegedly advertised shops for sale, took money from buyers and then disappeared. The minister said relaxed licensing rules in 2023 had led to 185 private markets; after complaints and inquiries, licences of 90 markets were cancelled.
Treasury lawmaker Saeed Akbar Nawani asked why officials who issued those licences were not held to account for public losses, arguing that a no-objection certificate does not end the duty to regulate licensed businesses.
Timeline: what has happened so far
- 2023: Licensing conditions for private markets were relaxed; 185 such markets were later established, according to the minister.
- This procurement season: The government left wheat buying to the private sector rather than purchasing directly from growers, Ms Butt said.
- After complaints: Inquiries into alleged fraud led to cancellation of licences for 90 private markets.
- Wednesday’s sitting: Treasury and opposition MPAs grilled the food minister on reserves, flour prices and the missing 2026-27 wheat policy.
- Ahead of 2026-27: Lawmakers said no wheat policy for the next fiscal year had yet been announced.
Aasan alfaaz mein
Punjab Assembly mein hakumat aur opposition dono ne Food Minister Salma Butt se gandum aur aate ke baare mein sawal kiye. Unhon ne kaha ke aata mehnga hai aur sarkari zakheere kam hain, jabke wazir ne kaha ke is saal khareed private sector ke paas hai aur stock maujood hai. Kisanon ko pehle kam rate mila, ab bazaar mein gandum mehnga bik raha hai. Ghar ke kharch ke liye aate ki qeemat aur aglay mausam ki policy dono ahem hain.
