August 25, 2006	Friday	Rajab 29, 1427

KARACHI, Aug 24: Dairy farmers are now again flexing their muscles for a further increase in the prices of fresh milk ahead of Ramazan despite the fact that they had raised the prices in March by Rs2 per litre.

They said that the increase in prices of cottonseed oil cake, a staple food for dairy animals, to Rs1,000 for a 50-kg bag, from Rs400 in the last few months, increase in prices of feed ingredients, diesel and petrol, flare-up in utility charges etc now compel them to further increase fresh milk prices.

President Diary Farmers Association Karachi Haji Mohammad Akhtar told Dawn that the buffalo price had surged to Rs70,000 per animal as compared to Rs40,000 five to six months back. Buffalos come to Karachi for sale from Punjab and the interior Sindh.

“We have informed the City government officials about our problem and have sought increase in prices,” he said.

“We want to increase the milk price to Rs32 per litre at wholesale level from the current Rs26 per litre,” Akhtar said adding that the increase in feed ingredient prices do not allow them to retain the prices at current level.

It may be noted that the City government had issued a notification in the third week of April fixing the milk price at Rs28 per litre at retail stage.

It was also reported that the City government was coming out with a token system, which would be issued on the spot to retailers for charging higher prices but nothing had happened so far.

Meanwhile, the Enterprise and Investment Promotion (E&IP) group of the City government, in a letter to City Nazim Mustafa Kamal few days back, said that E&IP had been created and assigned the duties to control, monitor and stabilise prices of essential commodities.

The government in the current Finance Bill 2006 has revived the administrative magistracy and has subsequently assigned the price fixation, monitoring and control of essential commodities at various levels of the provincial and district administration.

The notification issued in this regard declared secretary industries, director industries and DCO’s of all the districts as controllers general of prices and supplies.

Thereafter, vide a notification on July 10, the magisterial powers were conferred upon the DCO, EDO (Revenue), DDO (Revenue), Mukhtarkars as magistrates first class and assistant mukhtarkars as magistrates second class.

This system has totally debarred E&IP group to act or at least fit in the activity of price control of essential items and its implementation.

In order to strengthen and rationalise the working of this group, the E&IP urged the City Nazim that it shall be declared as controller general of prices in the CDGK by omitting director industries, who has no role to play in this field.

Market forces had already become active in increasing the prices of tea, flour, fresh milk, meat, bread, vegetable ghee and cooking oil, vegetables, fruits etc. Even many of the players have expedited their efforts in stock piling in order to make windfall in the holy month.