QUETTA, July 20: The life of common man has become miserable as a result of the constant rising cost of living. It is an undisputable fact that over 70 per cent of population in rural Balochistan is living below poverty line or earning much less than one dollar a day. It was around 50 per cent prior to the prolonged drought, which persists in Balochistan. It jumped by 20 per cent making the percentage to 70 or more.
The Quetta city with its meagre resources and minimum business activities in absence of significant number of industrial units is worst hit by the slowdown in economy.
By all standards, Quetta is the most costly city in Pakistan where cost of living is very high and beyond the imagination of the common people in other parts of the country. Rents for houses are very high. Quetta receives goods of daily uses, primary products, mainly vegetables and kitchen items, from other parts of the country.
The constant increase in tariff for utility services, including gas, electricity, water and telephone, is making a permanent dent on the purse of the common man. Oil prices are on the rise affecting every sector of the economy and ultimately shifting the burden on the consumers of all goods and services. The upward fluctuation of utility bills is straining the limited resources and means of livelihood of common people, mainly in the middle class income group.
A government servant Nadeem Ahmed having a family of five members said that increasing rates of utility bills, almost after every two months, disturbed the monthly budget of all families.
“Every month we receive different utility bills with at least 5 to 10 per cent increases,” Nadeem said.
Property rates are also very high in Quetta, which also affect the house rents. If one hires a house in a posh locality, he can get a three-room house at Rs5,000. The same house in a moderate locality is around Rs3,000-4,000, while in slum it is not less than Rs1,500-2,000. It indicates the higher house rent in the provincial capital.
Abid Hussian, who works in a private institution, get around Rs14,000 salary. He has four children and a wife and is living in a rented house in a housing scheme.
“I am paying Rs5,000 per month as house rent and according to agreement I am bound to increase house rent 15 per cent after two years,” Abid said.
Similar is the case with the cost of education to the children of middle class. In smaller localities in Quetta city, the school fees are in hundreds, while the prestigious schools are charging thousands of rupees with no government check on fleecing the people.
“I have no other option but to send my children to the private school for better education. Despite tall claims, education department failed to improve the government schools and colleges education standard,” Shoukat Ali a small businessmen, who is running his shop in a market, said.
An average person, mainly in the government service, is not earning more than Rs8,000 a month. Average family members are not less than five, rather more. The same man spends Rs700 for monthly ration for his kitchen some 10 years ago. Now he needs more than Rs3,500 per month with the same quantity of kitchen items a months. It is a hard fact that there is 500 per cent rise in cost of living during the past 10 years.
A common man spends his entire income on his food and house rent leaving noting for education, clothing and meeting other expenses. “After spending monthly salary on kitchen, education, transport, house rent, health and utility bills nothing is left for savings, says Arshad Butt, a government servant. — Saleem Shahid