LAHORE: Shopkeepers held, fined for price violation
By Our Reporter
LAHORE, Oct 22: City District Government's checking teams jailed and fined more shopkeepers for selling essential commodities at high rates on Friday. Sixteen butchers found selling mutton and beef above the fixed price were sent to jail by the special magistrate.
Deputy District Officer (Revenue) Usman Anwar and Mudassar Malik checked prices at 511 places in Ramazan Bazaars and other places and imposed a fine of Rs316,000 on 134 shopkeepers for overcharging. FIRs were also lodged against 21 shopkeepers.
Meanwhile, the CDG food squad destroyed 400kg spurious tomato ketchup during raids on Ahmad, Lasani, Karishma, Karachi and Shah Jee burger stalls in Barkat Market, Garden Town. The squad also seized 5,000 roll patti of samosas and 120 chicken sandwich and samosa filling during raids in Rajgarh and Fatehsher Road.
'ARTIFICIAL INFLATION:' Acting District Nazim Farooq Amjad Mir said on Friday "the political elements trying to give an impression of the failure of the City District Government by creating artificial inflation are living in a fool's paradise."
The Nazim remarked this while ordering opening of more Ramazan Bazaars and increase in the number of shops in the existing bazaars in the provincial metropolis to ensure availability of essential commodities at fair prices. He was presiding over a meeting of the District Price Control Committee at the District Coordination Officer's Office.
Directing increase in flour supply to rural areas and association of union council Nazims in distribution, he said the CDG was responsible for ensuring availability of the essential commodities and exercising control over the prices for which it required the cooperation of the business community and the administration.
He said the CDG would not spare those trying to create artificial inflation through hoarding, and marketing substandard goods. He also directed the raiding teams to conduct price checking raids not only in the provincial metropolis, but also in its suburbs. Prices at the big stores, he said, should also be monitored along with the shops.
The acting Nazim was informed that 28 shopkeepers had been arrested in the city while 142 booked for selling essential items at exorbitant rates and fined Rs639,000 during the past six days. The meeting was attended by DCO Khalid Sultan and representatives of the wholesalers of Akbari Mandi, retailers and meat sellers.
PROFITEERS: Punjab Tourism Minister Mian Muhammad Aslam Iqbal has said the government will not spare the traders violating the sanctity of the holy month of Ramazan.
Talking to the people during the inspection of the Shadman Ramazan Bazaar here on Friday, the minister said that price checking raids had been started to nab the hoarders and profiteers.
He said that price control committees had also been constituted throughout the province. Performance reports of these committees would be submitted to the chief minister secretariat regularly and officials failing to discharge their duties in respect of controlling the prices would be proceeded against.
