Punjab CS vows all administrative steps to reduce prices

GUJRANWALA: Punjab Chief Secretary Jawad Rafique Malik has said that all possible administrative measures will be taken to ensure relief to the people by lowering prices of essential commodities, especially wheat flour, sugar, pulses and vegetables.

He was chairing a meeting of secretaries, commissioners, deputy commissioners, police officers and others concerned officers. He said the Punjab government had decided to set up Sahulat Bazaars across the province for providing people with all essential food commodities on the govt notified rates.

The chief secretary vowed not to spare all those who misused the facility of subsidised wheat quota. He said the government had also decided to take solid action against the owners of mills who were not supplying flour in the open market according to the wheat quota.

He said action was also being taken against the corrupt officers and officials of Food, Revenue and other departments. He said that all deputy directors and district food controllers of the Food Department would be replaced with the administrative officers to ensure transparency and efficiency in the department while the provincial secretaries would pay surprise visits to all districts of the province to easy availability of food items at fixed rates.

Every effort would be made to ensure that the stocks of sugar mills were seized and sold in the open market at the government rates, he added. He said all assistant commissioners, deputy commissioners and other officers concerned must conduct random but regular inspections of the flourmills and take strict legal action against the mills which failed to supply flour in the open market as per the given wheat.

He also directed the secretaries of departments concerned to provide all possible facilities to farmers for sale of vegetables at cheap and wholesale prices and to set up special stalls of vegetables in the Sahulat Bazaars.

He ordered that those shops should be sealed which were not displaying the official price lists and those charging higher rates must be taken to task. He said that heavy fines must be imposed and those involved in hoarding be sent to jail after a summary trial under the Price Control Act.