DPM orders immediate wheat release, reaffirms 1m tonne import plan

Mettis Global reported that Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar has ordered PASSCO to release wheat for the provinces without delay, matching the quantities each had been approved for. Provincial governments were also asked to pay on time and collect the stock allocated to them. Dar chaired the Islamabad meeting that reviewed the country's wheat stock position.

The gathering confirmed the earlier decision to bring in wheat, with a cap of one million metric tonnes. The Trading Corporation of Pakistan was asked to proceed right away. The first phase covers 750,000 metric tonnes, with delivery set for November.

Dar urged all relevant bodies to keep coordinating closely so that wheat supply, steady prices and consumer relief are maintained. He also thanked the provinces, the Ministry of National Food Security and Research and the Ministry of Commerce for their help on import issues, price stability and curbing hoarding. Earlier, officials had begun assessing an import of about one million tonnes once provincial requests for PASSCO-held stock were found to be larger than available supplies.