Decision to increase wheat prices withdrawn in Gilgit

Following widespread protests led by the Public Action Committee in Gilgit-Baltistan, the regional government has officially withdrawn its decision to increase wheat prices. The decision, initially approved on December 25, 2023, faced strong opposition from various sectors. The Gilgit-Baltistan Council and cabinet members, with the Chief Minister's approval, collectively decided to revoke the notification, responding to the demands raised during the public sit-in.

The people of Gilgit-Baltistan have been getting wheat subsidies from the Government of Pakistan since the time of former Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. The government also paid for the transport costs of wheat. However, the wheat subsidy system faced problems and corruption during the time of Pervez Musharraf.

Gilgit Government cancels wheat price hike

The wheat prices were not updated and the government of Gilgit-Baltistan owed money to Pasco, the wheat supplier. In 2015, the PML-N government included the wheat subsidy for the first time in the federal budget and gave 6 billion rupees. It also paid the old dues.

In 2015, when Gilgit-Baltistan got 6 billion rupees for wheat subsidy, a 40 kg bag of wheat in Pakistan cost 1300 rupees. But in Gilgit-Baltistan, it was fixed at 640 rupees per bag. The wheat subsidy situation got worse when the wheat allocation did not increase and the prices went up.

In 2021, Chief Minister of Gilgit-Baltistan Khalid Khurshid's government added 2 billion rupees to the wheat subsidy from the provincial budget. But in the next year, it increased the wheat price by 20 rupees per kg. It also increased the wheat amount to 10 billion rupees. But because of the big difference in prices, Gilgit-Baltistan could not get enough wheat. Instead of 40 kg, only 20 kg of flour was given to the people.

The provincial government led by Haji Gulbar Khan agreed to increase the prices in a cabinet meeting held in Skardu in December. It first suggested 52 rupees per kg but then changed it to 36 rupees per kg. It said that the wheat was bought from farmers in Punjab at 139 rupees per kg and sold at more than 150 rupees per kg.

Protesters: notification unclear, sit-in continues

Gilgit-Baltistan Food Minister Ghulam Muhammad said that the wheat quality would also be better. He said that local wheat and foreign (Ukrainian) wheat were given equally to the whole country. But Gilgit-Baltistan got 75 per cent local wheat.

The people did not accept this decision of the government. The public action committee, which had political, religious, regional and business groups, asked the government to bring back the old prices. But the government did not listen to them. So the people started protesting in Skardu and other districts like Gilgit. They also started a long march from different districts to Gilgit on the 27th. The protest became stronger and the people also asked for 14 other demands.

Ehsan Ali Advocate, Coordinator of Awami Action Committee Gilgit-Baltistan, highlighted that a mere notification cannot nullify a cabinet decision. Moreover, the notification lacks clarity on future wheat prices, stabilization measures, and procedural details. In response, the committee announced its intent to continue the sit-in until their demands are adequately addressed.

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