Pakistan farmers set to hold nationwide protest over wheat crisis from May 10

Announcing the same, Kissan Ittehad Pakistan Monday said thousands of farmers will join the stir that will commence from Multan.

Despite being a local 'bumper crop', the prices of wheat have dropped below the support price of Rs 3,900 per 40kg, prompting an outrage over the decision to import the cereal, Dawn reported.

On April 30, a similar protest took place, resulting in the detention of hundreds of farmers in the country.

The farmers are protesting against the government's decision to import wheat last year and this year, resulting in the fall in wheat prices in the market, Al Jazeera reported.

As Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's government has promised to support the farmers, a cabinet committee has been formed to probe why the previous caretaker government, headed by former PM Anwar-ul-Haq Kakar, imported the commodity despite an ample supply in the country.

The farmers' union reiterated its determination to relaunch the nationwide agitation against the crisis.

Kissan Ittehad president Khalid Khokhar said, "I've talked to many farmer groups and we have decided to protest not for our own interest but for the benefit of country."

Speaking at a press conference, Khokhar accused the caretaker government of causing loss of over Rs 400 billion to the national treasury by importing wheat worth $1 billion (about Rs 277 billion) during a foreign exchange shortage.

Khokhar claimed that the "mafia" profited Rs 100 billion from the wheat import, while farmers suffered losses of around Rs 400 billion by selling their wheat at reduced rates.

Khokhar declared that the Kissan Ittehad would lead nationwide protests against government's wheat policy. "We'll kick off in Multan on May 10 expand our movement across the country," he said. "Thousands of farmers, along with their livestock and families, will join."

"Our sole objective is to provide relief. Without agriculture, we are nothing," he added.

In 2022, Pakistan's wheat production fell short of its annual consumption of approximately 30 million tones, leading to increased prices and the lengthy queues at the shops in urban areas. There were also reports of individuals being trapped in overcrowded situations while trying to buy the essential commodity.