Pakistan, Feb. 9 -- Ideally, there should be no government interference in a crop's price mechanism. But when there is no government system to shield farmer's interests, hoarders and cartels get free rein to exploit them. This is what happened last year when the Punjab government neither bought wheat from farmers nor announced a support price. It broke the farmers' backs and financial health.

Now, the federal government has decided to stop announcing a minimum support price for wheat. This move is part of an agreement with the International Monetary Fund. Officials say there is enough wheat for the year and no imports will be needed. They also claim there are no restrictions on wheat movement, and private storage will be made available t...