• Baqar unhappy with artificial increase in prices of essential commodities
• Orders officials to ensure strict action against profiteers
• Commissioner tells CM anti-profiteering drive already began

KARACHI: A fresh wave of price hike has hit the metropolis before the Feb 8 general elections as most of the officers responsible to check price hike and curb profiteering are currently busy in election-related duties, it emerged on Monday.

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) had appointed deputy commissioners (DCs) of Karachi’s seven districts and many assistant commissioners as district returning officers (DROs) and returning officers (ROs), respectively.

Sources said the DCs, who were the administrative heads in their respective districts, were not able to supervise the action against profiteers due to their election-related engagements.

The situation can be gauged from the fact that the retail price of eggs jumped to Rs410 a dozen in a short span of one week as the commodity was earlier available at Rs380 per dozen. However, the official price of eggs is Rs290 per dozen.

The issue attracted the attention of caretaker Chief Minister retired Justice Maqbool Baqar, who on Monday expressed serious concern over the continued hike in the prices of essential commodities in the city and directed the city administration and the bureau of supply and prices to improve their performance for implementation of official prices.

Official sources said that the caretaker chief minister ordered the city commissioner to take strict action against profiteers and hoarders to implement officially notified prices of daily use commodities, including meat, chicken, vegetables, fruit and pulses.

They said Justice Baqar expressed grave concern over the failure of the city administration and bureau of supply and prices to ensure the availability of essential commodities to citizens on officially fixed prices.

The sources said that in November, the chief minister had held a meeting over price hike in the city and directed the administration to take action against profiteering.

They said that later on the CM held another meeting on price control in the third week of Dec, again asking the city administration and the bureau to ensure that vendors and shopkeepers did not sell essential commodities on exorbitant prices.

The sources said that the chief minister also expressed grave concern and surprise as to why vegetables and fruits were being sold at different rates in different parts of the city.

They said that the chief minister had been getting reports of the price hike in the city and wanted the city administration and the bureau of supply and prices to make their price control system effective.

The sources also said that the bureau of supply had miserably failed to ensure the provision of price lists, which were required to be displayed by the vendors and shopkeepers.

They added that one of the major shortcomings of the administration was lack of staff required to check and enforce official prices across the city.

A statement issued by the CM said that Commissioner Muhammad Saleem Rajput on Monday briefed the chief minister about the action taken against the profiteers.

He told the CM that a regular anti-profiteering campaign against wholesalers had been launched on Sunday across the city.

The commissioner said that fines of over Rs1,390,000 were imposed on 234 wholesalers.

Giving district-wise break of the action against profiteers, he said that fine of Rs300,500 was imposed on 11 wholesalers of essential commodities in district East, while a fine of Rs22,300 was imposed against 30 wholesalers in Korangi.

Fine of Rs322,000 was imposed on 69 wholesalers in district Malir, while a fine of Rs267,000 was imposed on 29 wholesalers in Central District, Commissioner Karachi said.

The commissioner said that 27 wholesalers were fined Rs73,000 in district West and a fine of Rs65,000 was imposed on 28 wholesalers in district Keamari.

He said that a fine of Rs336,500 was imposed on 40 wholesalers in district South.

According to the statement, the chief minister directed the commissioner to effectively enforce official rates of the essential commodities at any cost. “Society should be cleansed of the crime of profiteering,” he said.

The commissioner assured the chief minister that every effort would be made to provide relief to the people.

Published in Dawn, January 16th, 2024