KARACHI, June 8: Contrary to the government’s claim of providing cheap atta to the consumers, the new budget, instead of proving people-friendly, is now turning out to be anti-people as price of various flour varieties has started going up at the wholesale level. Similarly, the wholesale price of sugar is also crawling up after the budget.
The rate of atta No.2.5, which was priced at Rs990 prior to budget announcement, has surged to Rs1,035 per 80 kg.
The price of 80 kg bag of fine atta is now selling at Rs1,135 after the budget as against Rs1,090 per 80kg.
Wheat price has touched Rs1,135 per 100kg bag from Rs1,050-1,100 prior to budget. The price of maida (super fine atta) has increased to Rs1,200 from Rs1,100 per 80 kg bag.
The real impact of increase in wholesale price of various flour varieties has not been witnessed at the retail throughout the city but in some areas retailers have increased prices. For instance, many retailers are asking for Rs17-18 per kg for fine atta as against Rs15-16 and Rs15 for atta No.2.5 as against Rs 14 per kg.
Similarly, sugar price has flared up to Rs2,520 from pre budget price of Rs 2,460 per 100 kg bag. At retail level its price is still intact to pre-budget level of Rs 26 per kg but market people smell increase in prices in case wholesale price continues to show rising trend after the budget.
“I do not see any reason of price hike in flour varieties and sugar. Actually the flour and sugar millers have increased the prices,” general secretary, Ration Merchant Association of Karachi, Ibrahim Bhutto said adding that the government wanted to see price fall in these items but millers, brokers, wholesalers and stock holders had always joined hands to keep the price movements at their hands.
He said that flour millers are playing the game in the market as 79 mills had hoarded a sizable stock of wheat at their godowns purchasing at Rs 980 per 100 kg.
The government’s tall claims that atta No.2.5 would be available at Rs12 per kg at retail outlets had been disproved.
Ibrahim asked the government to check the wheat stocks at the flour mills and take notice of sudden increase in prices of flour varieties and wheat soon after the budget. He also urged the government to examine the sugar stock situation with the millers as well as in the markets.
However, he said that the budget 2005-2006 had been made to benefit only elite class, industrialists and businessmen and it had nothing to do with the common men who have been groaning under high cost of living because of rising prices of essential items and utility bills.
In case of sugar, he said it was strange that Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) that the corporation had bought sugar at Rs17 per kg from the millers but was selling it at Rs23 per kg at utility stores. “How much of the population buys commodities from the utility stores which are fewer in numbers in the mega city,” Bhutto said urging the government to chalk out policies in a way that essential items like sugar could be sold at Rs23 per kg at various leading markets instead of a few utility stores.
General Secretary, Karachi Retail Grocers Group (KRGG), Farid Qurieshi said he could not give the actual reason for the price hike in sugar and flour varieties after the budget.
Perhaps the flour millers were not receiving wheat from the government stocks or wheat was not arriving from Punjab, he mentioned a few reasons for the increase in flour prices.
Vice Chairman, Pakistan Flour Mills Association (PFMA), Naeem Ahmad Khan Malik attributed the post-budget price hike in wheat and flour varieties to slow arrival of wheat from Punjab at exorbitant rate. “Millers are getting Punjab’s wheat at Rs ,125-1,130 per 80 kg bag,” he said.
He said millers were planning to buy Punjab’s wheat after a bumper crop but now many mills were in quandary in the wake increase in wheat prices.
He said that the price hike situation had emerged at the time when wheat harvesting was in process.
