Pakistani troops escort wheat trucks to stop theft

By Kamran Haider

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistani paramilitary troops have begun escorting trucks carrying wheat to stop supplies being stolen amid shortages of flour that have inflamed anger against the government before an election, an official said on Sunday.

Pakistanis are complaining bitterly about a shortage of wheat flour and rising prices of the staple food which the government has blamed on hoarding and smuggling to neighbouring countries.

Farooq Ahmed Khan, chief of the National Disaster Management Authority, said some supplies had been going missing somewhere along the supply chain.

"It seemed there could be something wrong along the chain from warehouses to mills and then to distribution points," Khan told Reuters.

"Basically, we're providing escorts and will monitor the entire chain so there is no chance of pilferage," said Khan, whose authority is supervising the monitoring.

Authorities have also been given "special powers" to detain hoarders and smugglers, he said.

Khan said wheat stocks were sufficient and he described the flour shortage as "artificial". The government was monitoring borders to stop flour being smuggled out of the country, he said.

"Within a few days thing should change for the better," he said.