Karachi Commissioner Muhammad Iqbal Memon has directed all the deputy commissioners to take strict action against milk farmers in a bid to control the escalating milk prices in the city.In a statement, the Commissioner Office said the hike in milk price made by dairy farmers was not acceptable as only the Commissioner Office could fix the price of milk.
All the deputy commissioners and assistant commissioner of the city, according to the statement, were clamping down on milk retailers and farmers in the city to bring down the price of milk.It read that within a span of three days, 31 milk sellers had been sent to jail for selling milk at exorbitant rates, while 110 milk shops had been sealed and a few fined with millions of rupees.
The commissioner said that the people of Karachi would get milk at the prescribed rate. Around 10 milk vehicles were stopped by the police on Bhens Colony Road No 5, Mehran Highway.Reacting to the commissioner’s orders, Dairy Cattle Farmers Association President Shakir Umer Gujjar said if the city administration resorted to stop milk vehicles or impound them, it would result in shortage of milk and further hike in its price.
The milk farmers have also stated the possibility of a further increase in the milk price in the future as they argue that the cost of milk production has been increasing rapidly. In directives issued by the Commissioner Office on Wednesday, all the seven DCs of the city were asked to stop milk vehicles coming from dairy farms.
The commissioner asked the DCs not to show any leniency over the matter. Following the directives, South DC Captain (retd) Muhammad Saeed Leghari said the District South administration had been clamping down on milk profiteers as the assistant commissioners of Saddar Town, Civil Lines, Lyari, Arambagh and Garden took action against milk sellers found violating the official milk prices.
