Govt Employees Steal Wheat Worth Rs. 3.22 Billion From Official Warehouses in Sindh

In a recent development that has sent shockwaves through the region, revelations of rampant corruption have emerged within the Sindh Food Department, implicating officials in a scandal involving the misappropriation of wheat stocks. An investigative report has uncovered discrepancies in the records of wheat storage, revealing a staggering loss of Rs3.22 billion to the national treasury.

The inquiry has unveiled that unscrupulous employees of the Sindh Food Department orchestrated the pilferage of 379,062 sacks of wheat from various warehouses across the province over the past years, amounting to a colossal sum of Rs3 billion. Exploiting the pretext of the 2022 rains, these officials allegedly engaged in deceitful tactics, including the falsification of records, to conceal their illicit activities.

According to the report, officials directly implicated in the theft and smuggling of wheat attempted to mask the stolen stocks by adulterating damaged wheat with soil and stones. The complicity of district officers further exacerbated the situation, as they failed to report the disappearance of the surreptitiously sold sacks.

Following the directive of the caretaker chief minister, the newly appointed chairman authorized the submission of a comprehensive investigation report to Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah, spearheaded by inspection team member Ali Gul Sanjrani.

The report implicates officials in the audacious theft of 379,000 sacks of wheat, with significant shortages reported in various regions, including Hyderabad, Sukkur, Larkana, and Shaheed Benazirabad.

Furthermore, it has come to light that 200,000 sacks of wheat went missing from warehouses in Karachi alone. The investigation underscored the cunning tactic employed by Food Department officials to obfuscate the stolen wheat by blending it with inferior grains and debris, thereby inflating the recorded quantities.

The investigating officials emphasized the alarming discovery that the stored wheat, purportedly reserved for two years, had been surreptitiously pilfered and sold in the market, with bags containing damaged wheat and foreign contaminants. Officials deliberately concealed the extent of the wheat’s deterioration from the investigation team.

The report unequivocally advocates for stringent measures to recoup the billions of rupees lost due to the wheat fraud, urging decisive action against the culpable officials. Furthermore, given the compromised quality rendering the wheat unfit for consumption by both humans and animals, immediate steps are urged for its disposal to mitigate potential health risks.

In a surprising turn, Sindh Minister Jam Khan Shoro professed unawareness of the scandal, pledging to provide a statement upon gathering relevant information.

The newly appointed chairman, Shakeel Ahmed Magnijo, has authorized the submission of the investigation report to Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah, marking a significant step towards addressing the pervasive corruption within the Sindh Food Department.