LAHORE, Oct 16: Essential commodities’ prices have gone up further during the past fortnight after the arrival of Ramazan as shopkeepers continue to fleece the consumers.
The city district government’s price-control mechanism is limited only to the Sunday and Ramazan Bazaars while the shopkeepers are free to charge the customers at will in the rest of the provincial metropolis. Efforts for discouraging overcharging by lodging FIRs have failed to produce any positive results despite registration of cases against hundreds of shopkeepers and even imprisonment of a few.
Price control measures have become ineffective to an extent that shopkeepers are charging different prices for the same commodity even in the same area. Most of them have displayed the official price lists but are violating the same frequently.
Shopkeepers started raising the prices a week before the commencement of the holy month and are maintaining the trend till date because of inability of the city district government and the town municipal administrations to control the prices effectively.
The retailers raised the prices of almost all the items of daily use in general and those used for fasting purposes in particular before the commencement of Ramazan without any corresponding increase in the wholesale prices.
Prices of commodities like potatoes, gram-flour, fine, tomatoes, brinjals, spinach, sugar, curd and fruit used for fasting purposes were raised in particular. The prices of quality potatoes have been raised from Rs28 to Rs32, while onions and brinjals, selling for Rs9 per kg in the wholesale market, are being sold for upto Rs20 per kg by the retailers.
Tomato price has decreased from Rs18 to Rs12 in the wholesale market, but retailers are not ready to sell the same for less than Rs20 per kg. Indian and Chinese garlic available for Rs37 and Rs56, respectively, in the wholesale market is being sold for Rs48 and Rs64 per kg by the retailers.
Sugar price increased from Rs2,600 to Rs2,800 per 100 kg bag during the past fortnight but the retailers are selling it for Rs30 to Rs32 per kg. Red chili powder price remained stable in the wholesale market, but the retailers were selling the same for a minimum of Rs60 per kg. Minimum price of 16-kg vegetable ghee tin increased from Rs835 to Rs850 and maximum price decreased from Rs960 to Rs940, but retailers were selling open ghee for a minimum of Rs60 per kg. Profiteering in fruit business remained much higher during the holy month due to being considered an essential for breaking the fast by the rich. Quality dates, being sold for Rs60 per kg a fortnight back, are now being sold for Rs80 per kg. Apples being sold for Rs48 per kg two weeks ago are now being sold for Rs60 per kg. Quality bananas available for Rs32 per dozen before the commencement of Ramazan are now being sold at Rs40, while Melon prices have increased from Rs24 to Rs32 per kg.