LAHORE, Nov 17: The Lahore District City Government has failed to provide quality stuff at relatively cheaper rates to the people at the much-publicized Sunday bazaars.
The main hurdle is stated to be a row between vendors and market committee inspectors over prices. The result is substandard items at the imposed rates.
A visit to various bazaars on Sunday revealed that the items being sold there were of low quality, making their low price no attraction for the people.
The bazaars were unswept and piles of garbage at places were repelling the people rather than attracting them to shops.
Many vendors at the Shadman and Model Town bazaars complained of what they said the imposed rates. They said selling items at the given rates was impossible as they could not even earn Rs100 after a day’s labour.
They said the market committee issued prices of different commodities without analyzing their purchasing price in the whole sale market. “Rates given to them by the committee are too low, “ they maintained.
“Unless the market committee does not allow them to have reasonable profit on the sale of different commodities, they cannot risk bringing quality stuff for sale,” they said.
On a visit of Lahore District Nazim Mian Amir Mahmood to Model Town Sunday bazaar, the vendors surrounded him and asked him to soften the committee stand on the price issue.
It may be mentioned that some vendors put up stalls of quality stuff but the rates were not less than that of the market. By offering substandard foodstuff, they make reasonable profit.
The government had claimed before Ramazan that it would re-activate Sunday bazaars besides introducing special sasta bazaars to provide quality and low-priced foodstuff to the people during the holy month.
However, it could only introduce some changes in these bazaars to continue them after Ramazan as well.
The changes are fixing of separate price-tags on each basket and no change in price-list once it is issued.
The market committees who are authorized to monitor Sunday bazaars charged Rs70 for setting up a tent. Earlier, the committee issued a card for Rs10 to a vendor to establish a stall in the bazaar. Under the one tent, five vendors can set up their stalls.
Some 70 per cent commodities on sale in the Sunday bazaars are substandard. Most of customers feel satisfied by getting things from these bazaars at lesser rates but at the same time they are worried about their quality.
There is about 15 to 25 per cent difference between the prices of commodities in the Sunday bazaars and the market. This difference mounts to 35 per cent in vegetable prices.
According to complaints lodged with the market committees by customers, some vendors misuse price-tags provided to them by the market committee to display at stalls. They usually sift out good stuff and put the tag on the remaining stuff. Applying this method, they not only make extra profit but also get away easily with the checking conducted by the inspectors of the market committees.
Market committee inspector Muhammad Asif told Dawn at the Model Town Sunday bazaar that to ensure low prices was their primary objective. He said they received about 10 complaints against the vendors throughout the day. Most of the complaints were about not fixing tags and charging high prices.
Asif said many customers here and Kot Lakhpat Sunday bazaars also complained of pollution in and around the bazaars.
Despite arrangements for alternative routes, there are complaints of traffic blockades in the localities where the bazaars are held. Another problem of these bazaars is lack of parking facilities.
At present, some 14 Sunday bazaars are functioning in the city under the control of the market committee. These are located at Model Town, Kot Lakhpat, Iqbal Town, Green Town, Johar Town, Shadman, Walton Road, Ghaziabad in Tajpura Scheme, Gulshan-i-Ravi, Islampura, Wahdat Road, Karim Park, Shahdara and Baghbanpura.
One located in Calvary Ground is under the control of Cantonment.
