The Punjab government has decided to seek help from Punjab Rangers to foil wheat smuggling in the province, reported 24NewsHD TV channel, quoting its sources on Saturday.

The provincial food department had written a letter to Punjab Rangers Director General and demanded few companies of Punjab Rangers that would be deployed at the recently made check posts at Motorways.

“It has been decided that now monitoring of wheat would be carried out at the entry points of Motorways also,” the sources said.

The Punjab government had erected that check posts at M1 Motorways to foil the inter-provincial smuggling of wheat.

Earlier, Flour Mills Association Punjab had announced that the mills association decided to increase the wheat flour price by Rs 40 per 20kg bag.

While making the announcement, Flour Mills Association Chairman Abdul Rauf Mukhtar said that after the increase the new price of the 20 kg flour bag would be Rs840 instead of Rs 805.

The association gave the argument that the decision was taken because the millers were not allowed to buy the wheat.

The news of surge in per 20 kg flour bag will certainly send shock waves among the people who had already been going through some of the toughest days because of the lockdown restrictions, lay-offs wave in industry and limited economic opportunities amid the COVID-19 scam.

Wheat Scam

The federal cabinet had given additional three weeks to FIA for a forensic report of sugar and wheat crisis inquiry commission. In early April, Federal Investigation Bureau reported involvement of bigwigs of government and its allies including Jehangir Tareen and Khusro Bakhtiyar in profiteering that led to cabinet reshuffle.

It is pertinent to note that the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on April 22 decided to launch an investigation against the sugar and flour mafia.

NAB said country’s major anti-corruption watchdog would not act as a silent spectator when all state organs are busy with battling a deadly bug while the flour and sugar racketeers go on the rampage.