Floods: Pakistan govt to consult coalition partners on importing goods from India

Pakistan’s government on Wednesday (August 31) said it will consult its coalition partners and stakeholders on considering importing goods from India as the country battles soaring food prices amid flash floods.

The idea to import edible goods from India was first floated by the finance minister Miftah Ismail on Monday when the country’s death toll crossed 1,100 and hundreds of thousands of people were displaced, and thousands of acres of crops were destroyed.

Also read: Pakistan floods: India mulls sending humanitarian aid; ‘saddened’, says Modi

“More than one international agency has approached the govt to allow them to bring food items from India through the land border. The govt will take the decision to allow imports or not based on supply shortage position, after consulting its coalition partners & key stakeholders,” Ismail said in a tweet on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Pakistan has decided to import onions and tomatoes from Iran and Afghanistan in the wake of an impending food crisis triggered by the flash floods.

The rain-triggered flash floods have inundated one third of the country and destroyed farmlands, causing a threat of shortages of vegetables and fruits along with uneven price hike of some essential commodities.

To ward off the impact, the Ministry of National Food Security and Research in a meeting held in Islamabad on Tuesday announced that it will issue permits within 24 hours to facilitate onion and tomato imports from Iran and Afghanistan, according to a statement.

Also read: Floods to cause $4 bn loss to Pakistan’s economy: Report

The ministry also asked the Federal Board of Revenue to waive taxes and levies on onion and tomato imports for the next three months and expects that this will be made effective immediately.

The measures are aimed at ensuring the supply of essential commodities in the market and stabilise prices, according to the ministry.

(With Agency inputs)