Profiteers fleecing people ahead of Ramazan

Rawalpindi: The city district government, Rawalpindi has failed to stop profiteers and hoarders to fleece public, as butchers, sellers of fruit and vegetables, chicken and yogurt have raised the prices before the start of Ramazan.

The prices of all kinds of fruit and vegetables have jumped up by Rs20 to Rs30 per kilogram on Monday. Whereas the City District Government Rawalpindi has its focus only on ‘Ramazan Sasta Bazaars.’

In the open market, butchers are selling 1-kilogram mutton at Rs1,000, beef at Rs550-600 and chicken meat is being sold at Rs300 per kilogram. While milkmen have started selling yogurt at Rs110-115 per kilogram.

Similarly, banana was available at Rs60 per dozen but now its prices have jumped to Rs170-200. The price of apple was Rs90-100 but on Monday it was being sold at Rs150 per kilogram. The ‘basin’ price has also increased from Rs100 to Rs120 per kg.

Price magistrates including revenue officials, TMA officials, Potohar Town officials, assistant commissioners and several other officials are only focusing on ‘Ramazan Sasta Bazaars’ which are total 16 in the whole district. Only 10 per cent people go to ‘sasta bazaars’, while rest of the people shop from the open market and the city district government has deputed no single price magistrate to visit shops in open market.

Assistant Commissioner (Rawalpindi) Tasleem Ali Khan has said that we were continuously registering FIRs and imposing fines against profiteers and hoarders. We have made a plan to stop profiteers looting public in Ramazan, he assured.