KARACHI, Nov 18: Brig (retd) Qamarussalam Khan, a former Director General of the Bureau of Supply and Prices, Sindh, has said that price control powers of the city and district governments under the SLGO-2001 are not clearly defined.

The decentralized setup does not seem to provide any effective machinery for price evaluation, fixation and control which, with the advent of Ramazan, has become a sensitive subject and needs to be addressed in a well coordinated manner, he added.

In an interview with APP, Brig Qamar said the laws pertaining to price stabilization measures fall into the following categories: — Powers and responsibilities of the controllers of prices as delegated under the Price Control and Prevention of Profiteering and Hoarding Act, 19977, and Sindh Registrationof Godowns/ Warehouses Act, 1995. — Sindh Standard Weights and Measures (Enforcement Act 1975). — Powers to establish farm markets and to constitute market committees under the provision of Agricultural Produce Markets Act, 1939.

The former DG of the Bureau said that with the devolution of power, the responsibility of price stabilization fell on the shoulders of the Nazims.

It is, therefore, essential that they should be given full control of agricultural produce markets in their jurisdictions and the powers of price control and controllers of weights and measures be entrusted to them along with proper expert technical support to successfully enforce price stabilization measures in their areas, he said.

As regards weekly bazaars, he pointed out that this concept was given practical shape in pursuance to the government’s policy to provide essential commodities to the public on reduced prices at convenient localities.

He said the leverage to the racketeers have given them exclusive control over quality and price thereby rendering the whole idea counter-productive.—APP