Govt announces Rs250 subsidy on ghee

Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting, Marriyum Aurangzeb, while announcing a major reduction of Rs250 per kg in the ghee price, said on Monday that the commodity would be available at all utility stores across the country at Rs 300 per kg whereas a bag of 10kg flour was already being provided at utility stores across the country at Rs400.

Addressing a press conference, she said that in 2018, the price of flour was Rs35 per kg but after the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) came to power, during the last four years, the pockets of “mafias and cartels” had been filled and the people were crushed under unprecedented inflation.

To mitigate the problems of the consumers, the present government, from day one had been taking steps to provide subsidies and relief to protect the people from the effects of inflation, she added.

She claimed that during the previous government’s term, flour was smuggled out of the country, it was exported and then imported, therefore, its price was increased. Similarly, sugar was also exported, then it was imported and its price was more than doubled to benefit the mafias.

Marriyum said that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had fixed the price of flour at Utility Stores at Rs400 per 10 kg and due to the shortage of Utility Stores in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (K-P), 100 mobile Utility Stores have been added there since June 6, 2022, through which subsidised flour was being provided to the people.

She said that on June 9, an additional 500 points were immediately allocated for the delivery of flour to the Utility Stores and today, 100 more points have been added. She said that now, besides Utility Stores, about 700 mobile vans and 600 points were selling flour at Rs400 per 10 kg in the province.

The minister disclosed that so far 262,434 10-kilogram bags of flour had been distributed at 600 sales points. She said that for the convenience of the people in these areas where utility stationary points or mobile vans could not reach, a toll-free number 080005590 has been given on which the consumers could register their grievances. In addition, complaints regarding flour quality or price difference could be lodged on a toll-free number 051-111123570, she added.

Referring to the price of ghee, Marriyum said that in 2018, during the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) era, the price of ghee was Rs150 per kg. In the last four years, ghee was being sold for Rs550 to Rs600. The minister said that a subsidy for ghee was introduced on June 9 with a total volume of Rs3 billion.

She said that the price of ghee had reached Rs550 per kg in the market. The government has reduced the price of ghee to Rs300 per kg by giving a subsidy of Rs250 per kg, she added.

A monitoring system has been set up in the Utility Stores for complaints of shortage of flour, sugar and other commodities and to oversee matters such as selling ghee at exorbitant prices in the market, she further said.

In addition, Marriyum said, price control committees had been constituted which would monitor hoarding and sale of items at higher prices.

The minister said that the monitoring committees would provide updates to the chief secretaries and the prime minister chaired weekly meetings in this regard in which the provincial chief secretaries, including the ministers of food security and industry, also participated.

She said that if the public noticed the difference in prices at the Utility Stores or if these items were not available, they could call on the toll-free number to register their complaint. and the monitoring team will take immediate action on public complaints.