KARACHI, Nov 10: In order to arrest the trend of price hike, the City government has immediately established helpline ‘135’ to enable people register their complaints against overcharging and profiteering by shopkeepers.

Complaints against non-display of price lists or any other violation of of price control regulations can be registered by dialling 135.

Price lists approved by the government have been made available to the staff posted at the helpline and consumers can inquire from them about the prices of various consumers and food items.

As a special Ramazan package, the reduced prices of certain consumer and other essential items had been worked out after days of strenuous negotiations between the City government’s Department of Enterprise and office-bearers of various wholesalers and retailers associations. The shopkeepers are bound to sell these items at the prices fixed by the government.

The prices of fruits and vegetables, collected from Sabzi Mandi, are released on daily basis after their scrutiny and finalization by the Department of Enterprise, the market committee and trader’s representatives. All the vegetable and fruit sellers are supposed to sell these items as per the finally fixed rates. At the same time, consumers have also been advised not to pay more than the fixed rates.

Meanwhile, the Price Checking Committee, on the directive of DCO Karachi, Shafiqur Rehman Paracha, challaned many shopkeepers on Sunday for violating the price control regulations. Many of them, however, let off after being issued warnings. Mr Paracha holds the post of the Controller General of Prices. The PCCs have been established in all the 18 towns of the city.

Iqbal Nafis, the District Officer of the Department of Enterprise, also visited Sunday Bazaar in Nazimabad and suspended for two weeks NOCs issued to two stall holders for not displaying prices lists.

According to the DDO Revenue, Gulberg Town, Agha Pervez, 18 shopkeepers were challaned in Samanabad, Water Pump and Gulberg areas for not displaying the price list. The DDO Revenue, Liaquatabad Town, Mr Aurangzeb, said that the Town Committee issued warnings to seven shopkeepers for the same offence.

WHEAT FLOUR: The office bearers of the Flour Mills Association told the DCO, Safiqur Rehman Paracha, at a meeting on Sunday that their member mills had received the subsidised wheat from the government on the first of Ramazan but the ensuing two holidays had delayed the supply of atta to the destined markets. The holidays, they added, had also hindered the process of sale through stalls though some of the mills had managed to make suitable arrangements in this regard.