16 flour mills fined for supplying substandard flour
By A Reporter
2017-06-09
RAWALPINDI: The district food department on Thursday imposed a fine of Rs1.78 million on 16 flour mills for providing poor quality wheat flour to the market and Ramazan Bazaars.
Following complaints about insects in wheat flour supplied under the Punjab government`s scheme, the food department sent samples collected from various parts of the districts to Lahore for testing in a laboratory.
The report received on June 7 confirmed the wheat is not fit for human consumption.
District Food Controller Mehar ljaz Ahmed Sial told Dawn complaints about moisture and insects in wheat flour bags were common.
He said the law called for tests to be conducted in the laboratory before taking action against flour mills and that as soon as reports from Lahore had been received, action was taken against the flour mills, the owners of which were also warned that if they continue providing sub-standard wheat flour, their mills will be sealed.
About complaints of forged accounts in the flour mills, he said the food department had cancelled the quota of wheat for flour mills as they were getting more subsidies from the provincial government.
Mr Sial explained that the provincial government gives a subsidy on 20 kg and 10 kg bags of wheat in the market so that they are sold for Rs500 and Rs250 each.
`But in their records, some flour mills show that they sold more wheat bags than they did and when the food department does a tally, they are exposed leading to their quotas now being cancelled,` he said.
According to the food controller, the provincial government provides 169,544 bags of wheat of 10 kg each at Ramazan markets in Rawalpindi and that of these, 92,395 were sold in the first 10 days of Ramazan and that 97,433 bags of 20 kg were sold in the open market.
He said the price of a 20 kg bag was Rs500 and a 10kg bag is sold for Rs250 at Ramazan markets. He said no compromise will be made on quality and strict action will be taken against flour mills, which had assured the provincial government that wheat flour will be supplied throughout the month of Ramazan.
