Sindh Food Minister Syed Nasir Hussain Shah has said that wheat procurement target for the Sindh province was set at 1.1 million metric tons for the current year with an increase of 0.2 million metric tons over the previous year target of 0.9 tons.
He was presiding over a high-level meeting held on Friday to take account of complaints regarding non-opening of procurement centers in the district.
The meeting was attended by Secretary Food Laeeq Ahmed, Divisional Commissioner Mirpurkhas Shafique Ahmed Mahesar, MPAs Khair-un-Nisa Mughal and Noor Ahmed Bhurgri, members of Sindh Abadgar Board and Sindh Chamber of Agriculture Ahmed Anwar Qaimkhani, Zahid Bhurgri, Mir Tariq Talpur, Umer Bughio and officials of food and revenue departments.
The provincial minister informed that identified procurement and bardana centers would be made operational from next week. In current year, 350,000 gunny bags would be distributed among wheat growers of Mirpurkhas division, he said, adding that last year 2,59,000 gunny bags were provided to growers.
He directed the officials of food department to distribute gunny bags among growers judiciously at bardana centers. The Sindh government was aware of growers’ issues and taking measures for fair and equitable distribution of the bardana to small growers on priority basis while wheat would also be procured from the small growers, the minister said. Committees comprising representatives of Sindh Abadgar Board and Sindh Chamber of Agriculture as well as officials of district administration and food department would be constituted to monitor the procurement process, he assured.