AS people are genuinely concerned that the price situation would complicate further in the forthcoming Ramzan, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has chaired a high level meeting to review the availability and price control of essential items during the holy month. While giving a free hand to the district administration and law enforcement agencies in the federation and provinces, PM Shehbaz said strict action should be taken against profiteers, hoarders and those overcharging.
We have been emphasizing in these columns that unscrupulous elements in the business community are taking full advantage of the political instability in the country to mint money at the expense of the common man. This is evident from what the chicken and wheat mafias are doing to the market these days as chicken meat is being sold at Rs. 720 per kg and wheat flour is available at Rs. 150 a kilo despite some measures announced and taken by the provincial and federal governments. Chicken prices were raised by the poultry owners on the pretext of non-clearance of feed consignments at Karachi port but the prices are going up and not coming down despite interventions by the Government.
The Prime Minister legitimately asked why prices of chicken meat are surging but people expect prompt action from the chief executive to reverse the trend. Same is true of wheat the price of which went up on the plea of shortages in the market but now transpires the commodity was rotting in silos and thousands of tons affected wheat is being auctioned by PASSCO at a time when the Government is placing import orders. In this backdrop, we hope the Prime Minister would not rest after issuing directions and convene follow up meetings to ensure strict implementation of the strategy to check prices and take the profiteers to task. No doubt, provision of subsidized items through the network of the Utility Stores Corporation (USC) and establishment of sasta bazaars help provide relief to inflation-ridden people but vigilance by tehsil and district administrations can make a real difference.
