Caretaker Chief Minister of Punjab Mohsin Naqvi has said that the province was considering announcing a subsidy on wheat as it was gearing to release its stock of the commodity.

“As of now, we do not how much of a subsidy will be provided. The Cabinet will decide on the matter in three to four days. If we give a subsidy of Rs4,000 on wheat then the price of flour bag will come down significantly,” he told journalists in Faisalabad on Tuesday.

The chief minister went on to add that the government was working to pass on the benefit of a cut in petroleum products’ prices to the masses by holding negotiations with traders and transporters.

“After the reduction in the prices of petroleum products, the fares of diesel-run buses have declined by 10% as we have inspected in several buses. Similarly, fares of petrol-run buses decreased by 15%,” he said.

The government held successful negotiations with the transporters who agreed to slash the cargo charges by 10%, which will happen very soon, Naqvi added.

According to him, the prices of pulses will ease by around 10% or around Rs30 per kilogramme. The flour mills association has also announced to slash the flour price by Rs15 per 10kg bag, and chicken prices will be declined by Rs110 per kilogramme, he said.

The ghee traders have announced its decision to decline the commodity price by Rs15 per kilogramme, he said, adding: “They told us that the decision will be implemented in the next two to three days.”

The authorities have decided to hold a meeting on a daily basis to review the prices of commodities, Naqvi said.