RAWALPINDI - Sasta Ramazan Bazaars have failed to provide relief to the citizens here as the prices of daily use item have no visible difference as compared to the open market rates.
The Rawal Town administration had set up six Sasta Ramazan Bazaars at Liaquat Bagh, Murree Road near Nawaz Sharif Park, Haideri Chowk, Sadiqabad, Committee Chowk and Awan Market Khiaban-e-Sir Syed.
Total 19 Ramazan Bazaars were established in District Rawalpindi out of which eight Bazaars were set up in Rawalpindi City and Cantonment areas of Rawalpindi.
Though most of the kitchen items are available in “Ramazan Sasta Bazaars” but with meager price differences. According to the citizens, the bazaar setup at various points of the town including Committee Chowk and model bazaar at Liaquat Bagh have failed to deliver any relief to masses and could not attract the citizens. Most of the people were also complaining of sub-standard food items at the Satsa Bazaar.
Whereas the USC subsidize shops have insufficient stock of some items. Likewise, during a visit to the different Utility Stores in the city here the other day, it was observed that most of the outlets were facing shortage of sugar and gram flour etc like items, which has common usage. The other commodities at these outlets also did not have any countable difference with the prices in open market. People were mostly visited to get sugar and flour on subsidized prices, but returned disappointed, as the Utility Stores’ management could not arrange sufficient supply at the outlets.
The citizens alleged that some managers of the utility store corporation outlets think it was ideal time for them to earn maximum profit by supplying the subsidized sugar to retailers in open market.
According to DCO Rawalpindi, the district government was trying to control the prices of the commodities at Sasta Ramazan Baazars to extend maximum relief to the masses in this holy month. “Meat, poultry and flour are available on subsidized rates in different Sasta Baazars,” he added.
About the selling of substandard food items, he said special teams constituted to check the quality and rates of food are conducting raids on daily basis. The DCO said ‘Sasta Ramazan Bazaars’ were held to provide relief to the citizens on the special directives of Chief Minister Punjab Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif.
Solid steps for the provision of quality products to the consumers have were by the Rawalpindi district administration, he said. He informed that sufficient quantity of subsidized flour is available in Sasta Ramazan Bazaars.
DCO told that fruits and vegetables are being supplied to the consumers on controlled rates and the rates in Sasta Ramazan Bazaars are less to the open market. He said ten kg subsidized flour bag is being supplied at Rs 315. The DCO informed that Punjab government had announced a special Ramazan package amounting to four billion rupees.