HITRAL, Jan 22, 2010: Political and social activist and a leader of PML-Q, Mr Fazlur Rehman of Booni has asked the government to provide subsidized wheat to the people of Chitral like it is doing in case of the masses of Gilgit-Baltistan.

Talking to this correspondent in Booni, Mr Rehman said that in 1973, the government of the PPP had announced subsidized wheat to the people of Gilgit-Baltistan and Chitral. Under the package, he said, the people of Gilgit-Balatistan were today getting a 100 kg of wheat bag at the arte of Rs800 while the same bag of wheat was vailabale in Chitral at Rs2,500.

He said people in the valleys of Laspur, Yarkhun and Mastuj which have common borders with the Ghizer, Yasen and Gupis areas of Gilgit-Baltistan were at a loss to see that on the other side of the border wheat was available in government godowns at the rate of Rs8 per kg while the same commodity in their side of the border was selling at

Rs25 per kg.

Not only wheat, many other facilities were easily available in Gilgit-Baltistan’s far-off areas but were considered a luxury in Chitral. Due to these reasons, the people of Chitral have, of late, started demanding that their area should be merged into Gilgit-Baltistan as the provincial government of NWFP has failed to ensure basic facilities to them.

In July 2009, he added, the district Nazim of Chitral, Mr Maghfirat Shah, openly demanded during the annual Shandur Festival that Chitral should be included in areas directly under the federal government.

The PML-Q leader demanded that under the subsidy announced by Mr Bhutto, Chitral should also get subsidized wheat at the rate currently enforced in Gilgit-Baltistan.--Bashir Hussain Azad