Vegetable, fruit prices continue to go up

LAHORE: Inflationary trend in the prices of seasonal vegetables and fruits continued while a number of items, including ginger and green chili disappeared from the markets ahead of Eidul Azha as consumption of these items increased.

This week the rates of almost all vegetables and fruits were further increased along with open overcharging by the sellers exposing the weak writ of the government and poor governance.

Price list violations were witnessed across the City, including in the makeshift markets and model bazaars established to provide relief to the public. The PTI-led provincial government is least bothered about the public woes and price list violations by the sellers. The public has been left at the mercy of the mafia against which PTI leadership used to raise voice before come to power.

It seems that the political leadership has become part of the mafia and not paying heed to the public grievances.

Massive overcharging for a number of vegetables and fruits, including potato, tomato, garlic, brinjal, cabbage and cucumber, was seen this week while a number of vegetables were not sold, including ginger, green chilli, cauliflower, arum, spinach in the weakly makeshift bazaars.

Similarly, a number of fruits were not sold, including pomegranate, papaya and guava on account of wrong pricing issue while B-grade items of the remaining fruits were sold at A-grade rates.

Like the previous practice, soft-skinned potato was not available in any of shop in the City and makeshift markets too. But the price of this variety of potato was issued in the price list to give plea to the sellers to sell the potato of store at the higher rate of soft-skinned potato.

In the Sunday bazaars, the price of soft-skinned potato was reduced by Rs 7 per kg and was fixed at Rs39 to Rs43 per kg, stored variety price was raised by Rs 2 per kg and fixed at Rs17 to Rs19 per kg, and potato, sugar-free, rate was increased by Rs2 and fixed at Rs 23 to 26 per kg, while stored variety was sold at Rs 43 per kg.

This week official price of onion was increased by Rs 6 per kg and fixed at Rs44 to Rs48 per kg but mixed quality onion was sold at Rs48 per kg.

The price of tomato was also further enhanced by Rs 17 per kg and fixed at Rs68 to Rs75 per kg but it was sold at Rs 80 per kg.

The price of lemon was increased by Rs6 per kg and fixed at Rs90 to Rs96 per kg but sold at Rs 100 per kg.

Garlic, local, rate was fixed at Rs142 to Rs152 per kg but sold at Rs180 per kg, garlic hernaiy at Rs 172 to Rs182 per kg with an increase of Rs 9 per kg, but sold at Rs220 per kg. Chinese garlic rate was increased by Rs12 per kg and fixed at Rs217 to Rs227 per kg but sold at Rs280 per kg.