Divine blessing or a burden?

Saturday, July 21, 2012 - Ramadan is a month of blessing and forgiveness. It is a month which gives a person chance to seek Allah Almighty’s forgiveness and keeps him away from sins. Fasting does not only mean not to eat and drink but also to keep away from all the evil doings. This year the month of Ramadan is coming in the hot and arid summer. Everywhere in the world on occasions either religious or social, the state provides relief to the citizens by lowering the prices of the goods. Unfortunately this does not happen in our country. In fact in the month of Ramadan the prices of the goods are raised twice the original price. Instead of giving relief to the citizens hitching prices complicate their lives. In this prestigious month people are more concerned about their expenditures then the prayers. Their only thinking is about the ways of gaining enough money to fulfill their daily expenses.

Poor people are the one who suffer a lot from this and face the difficult times. For bread and butter they work in this baked heat in fasting but still they can not meet the ends. In fact in the latest scenario of Pakistan the middle class is gradually moving towards the lower class. It is not easy for them to maintain their standard and live their lives as they used to.

Government should keep a check on the prices and try to give relief to the citizens as much as they can in this month. They should arrange sehari and iftari for those who can not afford them. Not only the state but also all those people should contribute their fair share who have the resources. In this way Ramadan can be looked upon as a divine blessing rather than a burden.

—Lahore