RAWALPINDI: On Saturday, the district administration and traders were unable to come to an agreement about the cost of food and groceries during Ramadanul Mubarak.
Local shop owners were forewarned on Friday to close their doors should the district government try to impose official rates during the fasting month of Ramadan.
Deputy Commissioner Hassan Waqar Cheema of Rawalpindi declined to release the price list based on retail rates, stating that the district administration’s price list will be adhered to strictly.
The District Price Control Committee meeting went on for over two hours. Traders contended that the retailers in Rawalpindi should receive their rightful profit per kilogramme after deducting transportation costs, since the city was not designated as a grain market and all grains were imported from the Sargodha grain market. They would object otherwise.
The traders clarified that goods such as rice and pulses could not be sold by store owners in the Rawalpindi division at the wholesale prices set by the Sargodha grain market. Nonetheless, the DC said that the Punjab government had made the decision to release a price list based on the wholesale prices of the Khushab or Sargodha marketplaces.
It is anticipated that over the next 24 hours, the new tariffs will be announced. Following a combined meeting, the merchants from all industries will determine the next line of action.
The district administration and retailers clashed on Friday over increased grocery costs, which included yoghurt and milk. They’ve issued a warning not to sell rice, pulses, white chickpeas or any other food items at the Deputy Commissioner’s office-set pricing.
Declaring that they are unable to purchase pricey pulses and chickpeas and resell them for less money, the traders have recommended that the government take action against the wholesalers for raising commodity prices rather than putting pressure on retailers, such as those selling fruits and vegetables, to raise prices under the pretext of inflation.
Traders have also issued a warning, stating that they may go on a complete shutter-down strike till Eidul Fitr if they receive a formal complaint against any retailer during the holy month.
The Grocery Merchants Association’s central president, Saleem Parvez Butt, presided over a meeting and announced that price magistrates had been instructed to file charges against shops and put them in jail.
“A modest retailer does not contribute to inflation. If the apparatus of government makes sure that wholesale merchants cut commodity prices, there won’t be any inflation.
He stated that the utility stores were charging more for pulses than the average shopkeepers, and he proposed that the prices be set by first putting the shopkeeper’s profit at the wholesale rate of the city grain market in each district, and then subtracting the cost of transportation.
“We won’t accept any pricing deals made behind closed doors, but we will offer our full cooperation in this respect. The Rawalpindi division would cease selling any such necessities, including groceries, if official rates are enforced.
Saleem stated that unless pricing magistrates bring charges and make arrests of small shop owners, they will not instantly close their doors.
The Gowala Union and the Mutton Beef Sellers Union, however, are also against the new rates.
