Shopkeepers ignore official prices

LAHORE:

Soaring food prices and rampant overcharging have left citizens frustrated as shopkeepers continue to ignore government rates.

Despite weekly notifications from authorities, essential food items are being sold at prices up to double the approved rates, exposing a breakdown in price control enforcement across the city.

Consumers complain that every market operates on its own terms. The official rate lists, often displayed for show, are routinely disregarded.

This week, the price of live chicken was fixed at Rs244 to Rs258 per kilogramme, yet shopkeepers openly charged up to Rs360.

Chicken meat, officially priced at Rs374 per kg, was sold at Rs480 to Rs550, while boneless chicken reached as high as Rs1,000 per kg.

A similar pattern emerged across vegetable markets. Potatoes listed at Rs60 to Rs65 per kg were sold for Rs120 to Rs140.

Tomatoes were fixed at Rs50 to Rs55 per kg but retailed at Rs120. Onions, with an official rate of Rs35 to Rs40 per kg, were priced as high as Rs80. Locally produced garlic was priced at Rs205 to Rs215 per kg but sold for Rs280 to Rs300.

Chinese garlic, fixed at Rs248 to Rs260, fetched Rs400, while the Harani variety was similarly overpriced.

Ginger, officially priced at Rs500 to Rs525 per kg, was sold for Rs600 to Rs700. Cucumber, brinjal, spinach, bitter gourd and other staple vegetables saw discrepancies between official and market prices.

Even items whose official prices were reduced saw no relief. Watermelon, reduced to Rs33 to Rs35 per kg on the rate list, continued to be sold at Rs80 to Rs130.