The current coronavirus pandemic and the lockdown in its wake have given a freehand to fruit sellers to sell fruits at their own discretion this Ramazan. The provincial government, like every year, couldn’t establish Ramazan bachat bazaars in the city neither there was any fruit boycott campaign in the first few days of the holy month to lower the prices of fruits.
Last Ramazan, the Sindh government had set up 25 Ramazan bachat bazaars in six districts of the city with the help of the district administration. The purposed bachat bazaars were to ensure a supply of quality commodities at the rates prescribed by the government during Ramazan. There were seven Bachat bazaars in the Malir district while four in District West, three in South, four in East and Central districts, and three in Korangi.
The people of Karachi boycotted the purchase of fruits for three days to protest against the inflated prices two years back due to which prices were lowered to some extent. That was the first of its kind boycott, which was initiated through social media without the support of any political party. The then commissioner, Ejaz Ahmed Khan, and the provincial government also extended their support for the campaign. One of the assistant commissioners of Karachi told The News, on the condition of anonymity, that they had been so busy in implementing the lockdown and making sure patients of the coronavirus who were at their homes in self isolation remained at their homes that they couldn’t crack down on the profiteers like every year.
Meanwhile, the commissioner office’s price and regulation department seems to have also miserably failed to implement its price list in the city this Ramazan. Despite tall claims of the provincial government and the city administration, profiteering continues unchecked in the city’s markets just like every Ramazan. Vegetables and fruits are being sold at prices much higher than the prices fixed by the commissioner office. In the open market, vendors are selling fruits and vegetables at almost double prices than the notified rates.
Open markets
The price list of the Karachi commissioner seemed to be blatantly violated in different fruit markets of the city, while no fruit seller had the price list of the commissioner office with him or displayed it at his kiosk on Saturday.
In Gulsitan-e-Jauhar near Jauhar Chowrangi, the prices of fruits skyrocketed on Saturday. The prices of the most sought after fruit during Ramazan, banana, was out of control. According to the commissioner office rates, the retail price of first quality of banana is Rs88 a dozen and second quality of banana is Rs63 a dozen, whereas, from the wholesale market, according to the commissioner’s list, it was sold at Rs85 per dozen for the first quality and Rs60 for second grade.
On the contrary, in Gulistan-e-Jauhar, there wasn’t any first or second grade fruit, but only Rs130 to Rs150 per dozen bananas were being sold. When asked for the commissioner’s price list, a fruit seller said that he did not have that. “No one follows the commissioner’s list, neither can they,” he said, adding that they got fruits at very high rates from the wholesale market.
The watermelon is being sold at Rs50 to Rs60 per kilogram; however, the commissioner’s rate is Rs33 per kilogram for a round watermelon and Rs38 a kilogram for long one. “No one can buy fruits, not even the middle class at such high rates,” murmured an elderly, Fatima Hussain. “The least government could do during the lockdown and pandemic is keeping the prices of essential commodities low.”
The woman said that fruits are essential for the people of her age to keep their vitamin level high. “But who would eat such expensive fruits?” she lamented, adding that someone who’s poor cannot simply look at these fruits.
Another young fruit buyer, who was making his way back from his office, was arguing with a watermelon seller to lower the price. “These are very fresh watermelons directly from Punjab,” argued the watermelon seller. “Not more than Rs40,” the buyer remained adamant and then the deal closed at Rs50, which was still very higher than the commissioner’s list.
A similar situation was observed in North Karachi, where bananas were being sold at Rs100 to Rs110 per dozen. A resident of North Karachi’s Sector 11-A, Fawad Aslam, told The News how prices of fruits had increased drastically since the start of Ramazan. “Watermelon is being sold at Rs50 per kilogram,” he said, adding that not once during the 15 days of Ramazan the price of bananas had lowered than Rs100 per dozen.
Wholesale market
The fruits, according to the vice chairman of the wholesale market, Asif Ahmed, are not being sold at high rates from the wholesale market. Talking to The News, he confirmed that the first grade banana from the wholesale market was sold at Rs85 per dozen and the price of second grade was Rs60 per dozen on Saturday.
“Every night there’s one member of the commissioner office present inside the wholesale market who makes sure that the wholesale rates are enforced,” he said.
Meanwhile, Assistant Commissioner Gulzar-e-Hijri Anwar Panhwar, who’s mostly present in the wholesale market during the auction, told The News that fruits come from Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Sindh to the market from there they are auctioned and then transported to the city. Once the auction is done, he said, they make sure that fruits are packed and sold from the market at the rates they are auctioned.
Profiteers
On Saturday, Panhwar said that they took action at Safoora Chowrangi where fruit sellers were violating the prices of the commissioner office. “We generally go to the market and if we find out from buyers that rates of the commissioner office are being violated, we fine the fruit sellers,” he said, adding that if they sat up a camp at a certain market the prices remained under control, but that was not possible.
Assistant Commissioner Gulshan-e-Iqbal Ali Gopang told The News that they had been taking action against the profiteers on a daily basis. On Friday, he said that they heavily fined fruit sellers from Jauhar Chowrangi all the way till Kamran Chowrangi. Apart from that, he said that a few superstores were also fined for violating the commissioner’s price list.
According to the commissioner office, a total of 937 fruit vendors have been fined various amounts totaling Rs4,657,200 in the city since the start of Ramazan, who included milk, fruit, vegetable, meat, grocery, poultry sellers and bakers, while no one has been sent to the jail.
In District South there have been 225 violators imposed with a fine of Rs1,624,000. In District East, 88 vendors have been fined a total of Rs590,000. In District West, 196 vendors have been fined Rs300,500. In District Central the highest number of 233 vendors have been fined Rs943,400. In District Malir 70 profiteers have been fined Rs69,000, and in Korangi District 125 vendors have been fined Rs1130,300 so far.