Muzaffarabad: A large section of people in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) recently demonstrated over shortage of wheat and even hold Islamabad and the PoK government squarely responsible for the acute food shortages.

While on one hand, the government supply of subsidised wheat has nearly stopped altogether, the prices of other essentials have skyrocketed on the other, reports ANI.

Shortage of wheat has led to a spike in prices of bread and bakery.

The shortage has also led to chaos and conflict in the region.

“We will continue to protest till our demands are met. The scope of this protest can also increase, it can go from one district to another. We can protest in the entire PoK region. If the poor people yearn for bread, we are not responsible for it. It is the responsibility of the government,” a protester in Muzaffarabad told ANI.

Locals said this was the latest blow in a series of troubles that has affected their basic needs and their standard of living.

A local trader told ANI, “Essential goods are out of the common man’s reach and we are helpless. The government is not helping us. Because of this, we have had to close the hotels completely. We are not getting our supplies fully and like every citizen, we, too, are helpless. Flour and ghee are priced at a premium and instead of grappling with skyrocketing prices, we thought it best to shut the hotels down.”