PHOTO: FILE
KARACHI: Another milk crisis is on the horizon in the city as dairy farmers’ associations, unhappy with the government’s capped milk price, have decided to increase the wholesale price of milk by Rs4 from January 11 and then Rs6 from March 1.
Resultantly, the retail prices of milk will also be increased.
In 2015, the Dairy and Cattle Farmers Associations increased milk prices, in the metropolis unilaterally without the government’s consent by Rs10 per litre, due to which the wholesale price of the milk soared up to Rs81. In their defence, the farmers’ association claimed that the last time the price was increased was in 2012 and the price of fodder had drastically increased since then.
Later, the issue was resolved when former commissioner Shoaib Ahmed Siddiqui intervened and formed a committee to look into the milk prices. At that time, according to Dairy and Cattle Farmers Association president Shakir Umer, the government notified that the rate for wholesale price of milk was Rs64 but in market it was being sold at Rs71.
Since, their cost of production increased manifolds, Umer said that they increased their rate by Rs10 and started selling at Rs81, and then government intervened and formed a committee.
On March 1, 2016, with the recommendations of that committee, former commissioner Asif Hyder Shah issued a notification capping the wholesale milk price at the market rate of Rs73 and retail milk price at Rs80. However, the retail milk price remained at Rs85 in the market despite the government’s notification, said Umer.
According to him, Shah did not increase the price of milk according to the whims and wishes of the dairy farmers’ associations and that is why they have decided to further increase the milk prices as their cost of production has increased drastically.
Initially, he said that they will raise the milk prices by Rs4 and then later in the month of March they will further increase it by Rs6.
When asked why they were raising the milk prices without the government’s consent, he responded that they had requested Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah and Commissioner Ejaz Ahmed Khan to meet them but no one paid heed to their requests. The retail milk price, he pointed out, will be increased from Rs85 to Rs90.
The founder of Karachi Milk Retailer Association, Amjad Ali, explained that when the wholesale price was Rs73, it was being sold between Rs80 and Rs85. Now, when the farmers are increasing the price by Rs4, he said, the retail price will increase to Rs90.
If any shopkeeper, due to the fear of the government’s crackdown sells milk at less than Rs90, it will be substandard or expired tetra milk, he claimed.
Khan was not available to comment on the issue despite repeated phone calls.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 9th, 2017.
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