RAWALPINDI: Naanbais in the city have rejected Punjab government’s direction to sell Roti and Naan at Rs16 and Rs20, respectively.

On the direction of the government, the district administration on Sunday fixed the rates of Roti at Rs16 and Naan at Rs20.

However, All Pakistan Naanbais Association President Shafique Qureshi rejected the new rates and said they were getting wheat flour at higher rates and it was not possible for them to reduce the prices.

He said the price of Roti was Rs20 and Naan Rs25. “We were paying Rs8,200 for a 79 kg bag of plain flour and Rs9,200 for a bag of fine flour (maida).”

Association president says it is not possible to sell Roti, Naan at reduced rates when prices of flour are going up

However, he claimed that on Sunday the price of plain flour had gone up to Rs11,800 and that of fine flour to Rs12,200. It is not possible for naanbais to sell Roti and Naan at the reduced rates when prices of flour are going up.

“The price of LPG cylinders has also increased and tariffs of natural gas have gone up by 200 per cent in the last two months. We also have to pay other bills.”

He said they were in contact with other associations across the country to launch a protest against the government and a meeting would be held in Islamabad to chalk out a plan soon.

Mr Qureshi said the caretaker government in Punjab and the district administration had been informed about the rising flour prices, but they turned a blind eye to it.

He said before taking any decision, the government should take all stakeholders into confidence but the new prices were issued without any consultation.

On the other hand, the residents welcomed the decision of the government to reduce prices of Roti and Naan. They said the government should ensure implementation of the new prices.

However, most of the people said there was no chance of getting the new rates implemented as traders ignored prices of edibles like milk, curd and meat fixed by the government.

The district administration had issued a price list of edibles on March 9 before the start of Ramazan, but the price magistrates failed to implement it giving shopkeepers a free hand to overcharge consumers.

According the official list, the price of milk was Rs170 to Rs190 per litre for low fat and high fat, respectively, but in the market it was being sold at Rs220 per litre. The price of curd was fixed at Rs200 but it was selling at Rs230 per kg.

Similarly, the price of mutton was fixed at Rs1,600 per kg but it was available at Rs2,200 to Rs2,300 per kg while beef rate was fixed at Rs800 per kg and it was being sold at Rs1,150 to Rs1,200 per kg.

Published in Dawn, April 15th, 2024