Poor consumers hit by price hike

With the advent of holy month of Ramzan on Friday skyrocketing prices of food and other essential items are putting an extra burden on the pockets of the poor consumers. Apple price surged to Rs 80 to 120 per kg, grapes Rs 100, guava Rs 50, Japanese fruit Rs 70, peach Rs 80, dates Rs 80 to 100, atta Rs 305 to 310 (per 20 kg bag).
The prices of edibles like wheat, wheat flour, bread, sugar, vegetable, meat, chicken, milk and other items are on rise in the local market. Government has failed to supply vegetable ghee, Gram-pulse (Dal Chana), Baisan and other commodities to the utility stores in southern Punjab contrary to the tall claims of smooth supply of daily use commodities.
Inflation, the average consistent rise in prices, is in an upward swing since June 14 this year as the week-on-week price indicators could not go down even once since then, according to the official statistics released so far. The prices of eatable items like wheat, wheat flour, bread, sugar, vegetable, meat, chicken, milk and other items are on rise in the local market.
Though, the government had announced a comprehensive Ramazan package to provide subsidised essential edibles at the available network of around 3,200 outlets of the Utility Stores Corporation (USC) across the country but it proved merely lip service, which cannot compensate the consumers who are seen in long queues outside the utility stores.
However, the people are questioning whether this limited network would be able to cater the needs of the 160 million population. The consumers are demanding expansion of the network in the long run, but on an immediate basis they want that the government should start mobile service of the utility stores to provide maximum relief to poor people, according to the Multan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI).
President of MCCI Anis Ahmed Shaikh urged the government to ensure the smooth supply of all necessary eatables and other commodities to utility stores. There was need for monitoring of the utility stores to ensure the quality of products, he said.
He also mentioned the government's announcement to provide subsidy on more than 1,000 products and suggested monitoring quality of products at utility stores. The alarming increase in the price of various essential items during Ramazan reduced the purchasing capacity of the poor and they are forced to buy the commodities from USC outlets, he added.