Punjab allowed 2m tons wheat export

ISLAMABAD: The federal government for providing fiscal breathing space to the Punjab government has allowed shipment of two million tons of wheat from the province to generate foreign exchange for the cash-starved province.

“This will be the second phase of wheat exports from the province. In the first phase, one-million-ton has already been exported,” a senior official in the ministry of commerce told Dawn on Tuesday.

In principle the decision regarding wheat exports from Punjab was taken last year but due to expulsion of PPPP ministers from the provincial cabinet recently has led to delay in the permission of wheat exports in the second phase. But a government official termed the delay as routine to maintain check on the grain reserves in the country.When contacted Food and Agriculture Secretary Junaid Iqbal confirmed to Dawn on Tuesday that the shipment of two million tons of wheat from the province had been allowed in the last ECC meeting.

After the completion export of one million tons of wheat from the country, the customs authorities have withheld further shipments from the ports in the wake of a letter issued to the customs authorities asking them for regulation of the wheat exports to the prescribed limit of one million tons. “This letter has actually created a hindrance in the smooth flow of wheat exports,” an official in the commerce ministry said.Another official said that the government of Punjab was so desperate to export the surplus wheat this year that even it was giving freight subsidies to transporters to offset the rising transportation charges.But,according to the source in the Punjab food department, the subsidy on transportation was much lesser what theprovincial government has to pay to banks in the form of mark-up, in case the government retains the commodity in storages.Punjab government was very sensitive regarding wheat exports this year, the official said, adding any hurdles if created could lead to further widening of tension between the federal and provincial government.The agriculture ministry has recently stated that the wheat sowing in rain-fed areas was increased by 18.8 per cent in Punjab while eight per cent in Sindh. The recent rains spell would definitely enhance the overall wheat production in the country, the statement claimed.It is estimated that the wheat production this year will cross 25 million tons as against 23 million tons last year creating more surpluses for export.