Profiteers rule the roost as administration fails to check price hike in open market

Rawalpindi

Profiteers and hoarders looted public with both hands on 1st Ramazan by selling all items particularly fruit and other food items on sky rocketing prices in open market shops, thanks to city district government, Rawalpindi which was only focusing on ‘Ramazan Sasta Bazaars’ to make up their deficiencies only on papers.

The city district government, Rawalpindi has left public in the lurch as not a single price magistrate visited in open market shops on 1st of Ramadan in this regard.

In total 30 price magistrates, revenue officials, TMA officials, Potohar Town officials, assistant commissioners and several other officials of departments are only focusing on a handful of ‘Ramazan Sasta Bazaars’ which were in less numbers in Rawalpindi while total 16 in the whole district. Only 10 per cent consumers could get to ‘sasta bazaars’ while 90 per cent public was on the sweet will of open market shopkeepers for looting them with both hands.

The deputy commissioner (Rawalpindi) Talat Gondal who is an acting commissioner visited a ‘Ramazan Sasta Bazaar’ Shamsabad on Sunday to check the quality and prices of items but not visited open market shops where profiteers and hoarders are looting public both hands. During his visit, he has claimed in his speech that we will never spare profiteers at any cost.

Acting Commissioner Talat Gondal said the bazaars are being set up on the special directives of Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif. “The citizens will be able to purchase all kitchen items including flour, sugar, grains, basin, meat, chicken, onion, potatoes, ghee and other products of daily use at subsidised rates, which will be less than the open market. Similarly fresh vegetables, fruit and dates would also be available in sasta bazaars,” he added.

He said that special price control magistrates would be appointed in every bazaar to keep a check on prices and quality of kitchen items.

Assistant District Collector General (ADCG) Nazia Sudhan said 16 bazaars including five in Rawalpindi Municipal Corporation area, two in cantonment areas, six in district council area, six in tehsil area and a model bazaar has been setup at Shamsabad.

On 1st of Ramadan, a survey conducted by ‘The News’ revealed that low quality apple was selling at Rs200 against Rs100, banana at Rs240 against Rs100, three kinds of date selling in shops at Rs240, 280 and Rs320 per kilogram, low quality peach was selling at Rs150 against Rs80, watermelon was selling at Rs40 per kilogram, low quality apricot was selling at Rs240 against Rs160, 1-kilogram potato was selling at Rs50 against Rs25, onion was selling at Rs40 against Rs25, lemon at Rs240 against Rs100, cucumber selling at Rs50 against Rs30.

Similarly, prices of all kinds of vegetables have also jumped up by Rs20 to Rs30 per kilogram on Sunday. Beef was selling at Rs450-480 and mutton at Rs700-750.

Talking to ‘The News’ people belong to different walks of life said that Punjab government should be setup more than 100 ‘Ramazan Sasta Bazaars’ in every area in Rawalpindi to provide maximum relief to poor people. They said that it was impossible for them to approach 'sasta bazaars' which were at some distance from their homes.

Nasir Mehmood, a senior citizen said that there was no price difference in ‘Ramazan Sasta Bazaar’ and open market shops. There was a major relief on ‘atta’ bags  in 'sasta bazaars' but there were also need of all other food items including fruits, vegetables, pulses, meat etc. in Ramazan, he said.