RAWALPINDI: The Central Kariyana Merchants Association and the Rawalpindi district administration have chosen to work together to set up a new way to change the prices of basic groceries like rice, sugar, and beans.
Grocery stores will not have to pay fines from the price judge until this system is fully functional.
But the Central Karyana Merchant Association has said no to the government’s plan to make grocery prices the same across Punjab. They pointed out that more than 15 districts, including Rawalpindi, are not makers themselves.
The group said that goods like rice, sugar, flour, and beans come from places like Sargodha, Khushab, and Faisalabad, which means extra costs for transporting, loading, and unloading, as well as different taxes.
Saleem Pervaiz Butt, President of the Markazi Karyana Merchant Association in Rawalpindi, said that they had sent detailed ideas and recommendations to the Director General of Prices Punjab and the Secretary of Industries.
For setting new prices, these submissions list all the costs involved, such as the cost of getting goods from source areas to Rawalpindi.
Butt emphasized that talks between the government and their reps are planned for next week.
His confidence was high that these talks would lead to the agreement on a new pricing system that would apply to all grocery items and end the 76-year disagreement.
