The effectiveness of the City District Government of Lahore’s strategy of getting shopkeepers and vendors arrested instead of imposing fine on them for overcharging to keep the prices in check during Ramazan is being questioned as big hoarders apparently ‘go scot-free’.

The feedback from those at the receiving end does no good as vendors term the crackdown biased and a bid to force them sell things on the rates fixed by the authorities on their own.

Profiteers make hay amid lack of monitoring

The CDGL for the first time changed its strategy of maintaining prices during Ramazan to be concluded next week.

According to the strategy, the CDGL top slots advised 90 price control magistrates to leave, what they called, the outdated and traditional practices of imposing fine on shopkeepers involved in hoarding and overcharging and go for the arrests to maintain prices.

The magistrates have so far arrested over 1,100 vendors in the open market and sent 200 of them to jail directly from site after conducting summary (on-site) trials.

The shopkeepers term the drive a move to threaten them alone rather than capturing the big fish while the officials claim that the CDGL’s new strategy remained helpful in keeping a check on commodities prices.“Why do the magistrates focus on us alone while they hesitate to capture the big fish involved in hoarding and artificial price hike?” asked Nadeem Abbas, a shopkeeper of Iqbal Town. He said a couple of days before, a magistrate inspected his shop and found few items available in bulk.

“He asked me why I kept the commodity in bulk. I replied I am not hoarding this as it’s my sale for a week. He refused to buy my argument and got me arrested on charges of hoarding. I had to get my bail for release,” Abbas said, adding that his relative at Shalimar was also jailed for two days under the same allegations. He said the officials must define a hoarder first.

Sarwar, another vendor, complained that the officials were arresting shopkeepers besides imposing a heavy fine on them for overcharging.

“Everyone knows that this is off-season of Banana as the country is importing the fruit. That is why its rates are high but the officials force us to sell as per market committee price list,” he said, adding that the system of price lists couldn’t be implemented until the officials honestly reviewed the wholesale and retail prices, labour cost and net profit.

“Fruit bought at Rs40 per kg from the fruit and vegetable market cannot be sold at Rs42 or Rs43 keeping in view the labour and miscellaneous costs as officials force them to do,” Sarwar explained.

Talking to Dawn, District Coordination Officer retired Captain Muhammad Usman dispelled the impression and claimed that his strategy of arresting vendors on a large scale had helped the CDGL bring down prices.

“Why do the vendors tell about major hoarders at the time of their arrests and why they don’t bring this into our knowledge before? It means abetting the big hoarders. Had they helped us in identifying major hoarders, they would have avoided their arrests,” he said.

The DCO explained that the CDGL not only arrested the shopkeepers, it has succeeded many big hoarders involved in artificial price hike as well. He said the price magistrates had so arrested over 1,100 vendors besides imposing heavy fine of Rs5million on several others. He said the ongoing drive was not limited to Ramazan as it would continue the whole year.

EID shopping in a number of city markets has entered a final round after the start of last Ashra (10 days) of Ramazan on July 20.

Currently, all major markets, including Azam Market, Anarkali, Model Town Link Road, Karim Market and Moon Market of Iqbal Town, besides various brands outlets on The Mall and in Gulberg, have turned into the busiest places of the city as the people throng them on a daily basis.

Most of the garments’ brands have put various articles on up to 50pc sale to dispose of their stock before Eid.

On the other hand, the people continue complaining about high prices and terming the sale tag just an eyewash.

“The prices of readymade garments are too high this year as they are beyond the reach of a common man. Suppose if the actual price of a shirt is Rs600 or so, the vendors are charging Rs1,200. But during the last Ashra, they reduce prices up to 50pc. It means there is always a win-win situation for a garments’ dealer but not for the customer,” comments Kashif while shopping in Karim Market of Iqbal Town. He urged the government to regulate prices of garments too by introducing new laws.

“It will really help the poor to buy clothes on the rates approved by the government like other developed countries,” he added.

(khalidpak284@yahoo.com)

Published in Dawn, July 22nd , 2014