ISLAMABAD, March 16: Sugar prices are going up despite the withdrawal of a NAB ‘inquiry’ into the sugar crisis. Market sources said on Thursday that prices had registered a fresh increase of Rs2 both at wholesale and retail levels.

They said that the increase was despite the mill owners’ assurances to the government that they would reduce the price if the NAB inquiry was stopped.

The National Accountability Bureau recently closed the inquiry in the hope that prices would decline.

The sources said after the latest increase in the price, a 50kg bag of sugar was being sold at Rs1,860 to wholesalers against the previous rate of Rs1,820.

The wholesalers, it was learnt, were getting sugar at Rs37.20 per kilogramme against the previous rate of Rs36.4 and selling it at Rs40 per kg to retailers while retailers were selling it at prices ranging between Rs42 and Rs45 per kg.

“The sugar price is still unstable in the market because they show daily fluctuations,” a wholesaler, Abdul Majeed, said.

He said there was no sugar shortage in the capital as stockists had literally tossed heaps of sugar in the market.

A senior official of Islamabad’s local administration said the government had not issued any directive to check sugar prices. “However, in such situations, responsible civic bodies are usually put on high alert to control prices by conducting surprise raids and taking legal action against traders,” he said.

Area magistrates are, however, inspecting warehouses and stores to check hoarding and ensuring availability of sugar in the market.