By Saleem Chandio
KARACHI: Advisor to Chief Minister, Sharmila Farooqui has said that performance of Bureau of Supply and Prices, Price Control Committee and Monitoring Committees has become a question mark in stabilizing the prices of items of daily use like pulses. atta, sugar, ghee etc. “The hoarders and profiteers are quite active in their very presence and extorting the people”, she observed and noted that wholesalers, retailers have put government fixed prices aside and charging prices at their own whim.
This is reflective of negligence and carelessness of officials and staff of concerned departments in keeping check on such illegal acts, the Advisor said and added that it has become essentially necessary to take action against officials and staff having vested interests and also bringing bad name to democratic government. She asked the Food department, Bureau of Supply and Prices and Price Control Committee to ensure the posting of reputed officials and staff, carry out raids against identified godowns of hoarders and profiteers, take custody of hoarded commodities, seal the godowns, cancel their licences, impose heavy fines and register cases against them. She asked the Food department to review the weekly performance of food inspectors and monitoring teams and take action against those responsible for negligence and dereliction in duties. She said it has come to the notice that an organized gang is raising alarm about rise in prices of pulses in the international market and creating an artificial shortage of pulses by hoarding them in godowns. In such a condition, she said, the city government should chalk out a concrete strategy in coordination with the police and ensure stringent action against hoarders, profiteers and their mentors.