SIALKOT-Though THE district administration officials and political representatives are busy visiting “Sasta” Ramazan bazaars, the consumers have been left at the mercy of the vendors who have increased the prices of commodities manifold.
The people are much perturbed following the increase in the prices of fruits, vegetables and other daily use commodities in the local open markets in Sialkot, Daska, Sambrial and Pasrur tehsils.
The people have complained that all the district officers are busy in making the Sasta Ramzan Bazaars successful but they are not paying attention to the day by day mounting price hike in the local open markets. The people added that fruit, vegetables, meat have already gone out of the reach of the common people leaving big question mark on the performance of the local price control committees.
Sakeena Bibi said, “The rising prices are the total failure of the local price control committees in Sialkot district”. Allah Rakhi said “the genie of price hike has come out of the bottle”.
Labourer Iqbal said, “The visits of the district administration officials, MPAs and provincial secretaries are not bearing fruit for the perturbed common man. Their visits to the Sasta Ramazan bazaars are only limited to the photo sessions.”
In Daska, a perturbed citizen Ghulam Hussain said, “The officials are only visiting the Ramazan bazaars and they are not taking pain to also visit the local open markets as well”.
Daska based Parveen Bibi said “there was no space for the poor in both Sasta Ramazan bazaars and local markets because the fruit, vegetables, meat and other daily use commodities are still lying out of the reach of the common men.”
Baba Ghulam Akbar said, “Every month of Ramazan brings an “uncontrolled” storm of price hike. This nasty situation should be an eye opener and point of grave concern for everyone.” The vendors are selling mutton at the rate of Rs700 to 750 per kg against the fixed official rate of Rs550 per kg, beef at the rate of Rs550 per kg against the fixed official rate of Rs380 per kg, sugar at the rate of Rs70 per kg against fixed official rate of Rs65 per kg in the local open markets.
The rates of milk and yogurt have also gone up in the local markets, as the vendors were selling milk at the rate of Rs90 per litre and yogurt at the rate of Rs100 per kg.
When contacted, the local officials said that there were conducting raids at the retailer shops and have fined several retailers heavily for selling daily use commodities on inflated rates in Sialkot, Daska, Sambrial and Pasrur tehsils.
The some retailers also complained that the action of district administration officials was only against the small shopkeepers, as they were only targeting the small shopkeepers. They said that big traders and merchants still remain uncatchable, as no one has yet taken action against these influential hoarders and big merchants.
Meanwhile, there was no remedy for the sugar-seekers as conditions of producing CNICs for the sugar-seekers and limited sale of only a single bag of sugar weighing one kg continued disappointing the people including the old women who reached there after travelling long from the outskirts of the Daska city.
Officials said that the TMA has imposed the condition of producing original CNIC by the buyers to ensure the transparent sale of sugar the condition of one bag of sugar was imposed to ensure the maximum availability of the sugar. Meanwhile, Commissioner Gujranwala Division M Asif visited the Ramazan bazaar Daska. He inspected the prices and quality of commodities. He directed the officials of Daska Tehsil Municipal Administration (TMA) to establish the public address system, sitting arrangements for the senior citizens and even the wash rooms at Sasta Ramazan Bazaar Daska.