ISLAMABAD Sept 23: Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz has reiterated government’s commitment to provide maximum relief to people during the holy month of Ramazan and said any price hike will be encountered with full force of the law.

“Provincial governments have already been asked to ensure adequate supply of essential items through an expanded distribution network and fully activated mechanism of price checks through the price magistracy system,” said the prime minister while talking to a group of parliamentarians who called on him at the Prime Minister House on Saturday.

“Ramazan is a month of blessings, and fasting acts as a shield against vices. The noble qualities of patience, spirituality, sacrifice and realisation of the pains of the less fortunate and the deprived can become the basis of a society based on social welfare, equality, justice, tolerance and a sense of caring and sharing,” he said.

He called upon all segments of society, including parliamentarians, businessmen, government servants and the public at large, to play their due role and fulfil their personal and collective responsibilities in maintaining the sanctity of the holy month.

Mr Aziz said in addition to the Ramadan Package announced by the centre, provincial governments had also been asked to devise similar schemes to provide further relief on a broad range of items most commonly consumed in Ramazan.

He said that President Musharraf’s address at the United Nations General Assembly projected Pakistan in its true light. It highlighted Pakistan’s role as an anchor of peace in the region and its efforts for dispute resolution and regional cooperation.