Essential commodities: Shoppers complain of overcharging at Sunday Bazaars

Vendors say they have reservations regarding the price-fixing mechanism

LAHORE: Overcharging was witnessed at several Sunday Bazaars as vendors claimed that the district administration had set ‘wrong’ prices for several commodities.

A greengrocer in the Shadman Sunday Bazaar, Muhammad Boota, told The Express Tribune that most vendors had reservations over the price fixing mechanism. “It is a routine practice that retail prices of seasonal vegetables for weekly makeshift bazaars are lower than the vendors’ own purchase prices. We are only doing business here because we can sell things in bulk. Otherwise, there is no profit in setting up a stall here. Vendors charge more than the prices set by the market committee to make the weekly venture profitable,” he said.



Another vegetable-seller, Shujat, said that the shortage of garlic in Sunday Bazaars was artificial. “It is just not available in Sunday Bazaars. It is abundant in the open market, but vendors cannot sell it in Sunday Bazaars because the price has been fixed wrongly. You will hardly find it on any stall in the Shadman Bazaar,” he said.

Lahore District Coordination Officer (DCO) Capt (r) Muhammad Usman had earlier directed all town officers to monitor price fixation in vegetable markets in the district. In a statement on Saturday, DCO’s spokesman said that Usman had assigned duties to all town officers and directed them to visit fruit and vegetable markets on a daily basis to monitor the bidding process to curb profiteering.

However, consumers were found complaining about overcharging.

A shopper in Shadman Sunday Bazaar, Khalida, said that greengrocers were fleecing the public. “They claim that the government has set wrong prices for several vegetables. They also sell sub-standard vegetables for the price of premium commodities. No official is available to check them,” he said.

Food Minister Bilal Yasin visited the Shadman Sunday Bazaar to check the arrangements. Talking to reporters, he said he had directed the district administration to ensure availability of all essential commodities in the bazaars and implement price control system in letter and spirit.

He said all essential commodities were available in sufficient quantities. “The district administration has effectively controlled prices of essential commodities. The government has launched a crackdown against hoarders and profiteers,” he said.

He directed town administration to improve parking arrangements at Sunday Bazaars to avoid any untoward incident.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 4^th, 2016.