“Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa is a wheat-deficient province, depends significantly on inter-provincial inflow”
KP Governor Faisal Karim Kundi. Photo: File
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Governor Faisal Karim Kundi has written to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif urging his “immediate intervention” against what he called “unconstitutional restrictions” on the inter-provincial movement of wheat to the province.
Kundi said the restrictions “directly contravene Article 151 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, which explicitly guarantees free trade, commerce and intercourse between the provinces.”
The Punjab government’s decision to restrict inter-provincial wheat movement has drawn sharp criticism from the KP and Sindh governments, which accuse it of stifling wheat supplies to their provinces.
Read: Punjab seed supply halt threatens wheat crisis
In a post on social media platform X today, Governor Kundi shared his letter to the Prime Minister calling for his “immediate intervention to lift the unconstitutional restrictions” highlighting their impact on food security and cooperative federalism.
Floods and Aftermath in Punjab
After the recent floods, Punjab introduced a permit-based system to control the movement of wheat and flour, saying it was aimed at curbing price rises in the province.
On September 7, Kundi had condemned reports of a Punjab ban, saying the measures had pushed flour prices to around Rs 1,200 per 20 kg bag in Punjab and up to Rs 2,800 in KP, placing an “unbearable burden on families already struggling with inflation.” The KP assembly unanimously passed a resolution condemning the restrictions and highlighting a 68 percent increase in flour prices. A national wheat policy approved earlier this month also clarified that inter-provincial movement would not be restricted.
Despite this, the KP government wrote to Punjab on October 23 warning that the curbs were disrupting supply chains, increasing prices and threatening food security. The province is heavily dependent on Punjab for wheat supplies, requiring about 14,500 tonnes per day. While Punjab allocated 2,000 tonnes under a permit system, KP said the quota was insufficient.
The issue was raised at a high-level meeting chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on October 17, where KP officials and the Flour Mills Association warned that stock shortages could worsen if the restrictions continued.
Sindh’s PPP leadership also criticized Punjab for restricting the supply of wheat seeds. Last week, the KP chief minister reiterated that the restrictions violated the constitution and the rights of the province’s people, and directed officials to demand the immediate removal of all barriers to ensure free movement of wheat and flour.
Read more: The government is finalizing a plan for the purchase of wheat
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa consumes about 5.3 million tonnes of wheat and flour annually and produces only 1.5 million tonnes locally, with the rest coming from Punjab and other provinces.
Flour millers and KP officials have expressed concern that the move violates constitutional rights and a recent deregulation agreement. However, Punjab authorities refused to impose a formal ban, but acknowledged setting up checkpoints to monitor what they described as “unusual” wheat movements.
But yesterday during a press conference, Punjab Information Minister Azma Bokhari dismissed reports of any ban and called such claims “baseless and misleading” at a press conference on Sunday.
Kundi warned that “such trade restrictions encourage illegal trade and hoarding in the province, further exacerbating the shortage,” adding that “Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa is a wheat-deficient province and depends significantly on inter-provincial inflows to meet its essential food needs.”
