No plan to end subsidy on wheat given to Gilgit-Baltistan

Gilgit: The government has no plan to withdraw subsidy on wheat given to Gilgit-Baltistan, rather it was taking, enhancementof wheat quota, into consideration following increase in the population of Gilgit-Baltistan.

A spokesman of the local administration dismissed the media reportsregarding likely withdrawal of more than 700 million rupees subsidy, being spent on transportation and procurement of wheat which is supplied to this remote and far-flung area of the region. He said, a summary has been forwarded by Northern Area administration formally and federal government would look into the matter. He said, a reasonable quantity would be increased in the quota, provided the federal government concedes to the summary moved by the administration. Nevertheless, he was optimistic that the summary is well-justified and would find place in concerned quarters.

He said the local trend of cultivating potato as cash corp is one ofthe main reasons of wheat shortage because the whole region is dependent on food department whereas earlier people had sufficient quantity of wheat during the whole year. APP