Inflation bites Eid shoppers at model bazaars

Shopkeepers sell readymade garments, shoes at exorbitant rates

RAWALPINDI:

Ramazan model bazaars in Rawalpindi city have gone beyond the reach of shoppers ahead of Eidul Fitr as shopkeepers are selling garments and shoes especially for children and vermicelli at exorbitant prices.

On the other hand, the tailors across the city have also increased the rates of stitching of a male’s single suit from Rs1,500 to Rs1,700. High stitching rates led to an increase in the sale and purchase of ready-made shalwar kameez in the open market.

This year, the City District Administration didn’t set up 16 traditional cheap Ramazan bazaars owing to high inflation and the non-allocation of the subsidy by the government. In their place, three Ramazan model bazaars were set up at different places in the city during the holy month but sellers charged higher owing to inflation and non-subsidy.

From the 20th of Ramazan onward, these model bazaars were converted into Eid model cheap bazaars with no relief in prices. In model Eid bazaars, readymade garment suits for boys are being sold at Rs4,500 to Rs9,000 and readymade garment suits for girls are being sold at Rs5,000 to Rs10,000. Similarly, the pairs of shoes for both boys and girls are being sold at Rs2,500 to Rs4,000. But the quality of these suits and shoes is extremely poor.

The prices of all Eid sweet dishes in these model bazaars have also stunned the buyers.

Where the city tailors are charging high for stitching, they have stopped sewing shalwar kameez at a single rate and displayed no booking notices at their shops. However, new suits are being booked at a sewing rate of Rs2,000.

Fayyaz Hashmi, the secretary general of Tailors Union Rawalpindi, says they earn in Eidul Fitr and Eidul Azha – two seasons in a year. Until the 15th of Ramazan, the tailors across the city booked per suit for Rs1,500 and now they are charging Rs2,000 per suit.

On the other hand, the citizens have criticised the arbitrary increase in stitching rates by the tailors. Mehmood Akhtar says instead of giving a free hand to the tailors to set the prices of stitching, the Deputy Commissioner should have set the official rates and crackdown against violators.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 8^th, 2024.