The Utility Stores Corporation (USC) administration on Monday inspected utility stores across the city to ensure that they remain opened to consumers on the first day of Ramazan.
Responding to reports about the closure of utility stores on Sunday, the USC said that while some stores were closed due to the annual audits, more than 75% of them remained operational. USC Lahore zonal manager Saghir Ahmed and USC Senior General Manager Masood Alam Niazi inspected the stores in Shadman, Model Town, Main Market, Riwaz Garden and on Shama Road. The USC operates 121 utility stores in two regions of the Lahore zone. Ahmed told The Express Tribune that utility stores remained operational across the city on Monday.
Utility stores in several areas, including Shadman, Ichhra and Samanabad, were closed for the annual audit on Sunday. Ahmed had said the USC was working to ensure that the audit was completed at the earliest to avoid any inconvenience to the consumers.
Utility stores across the city have been instructed to conduct the annual audit during the nights and keep serving consumer in daytime. “The audit has not been completed. We are trying to ensure that the exercise does not hamper services to the consumers,” Ahmed said.
Ahmed said that a majority of the stores had completed the June closing by Sunday night. The remaining, he said, were expected to carry out the audits by Monday night.
Despite the USC assurance, there were reports on Monday about closure of utility stores in some areas. Stores in Model Town, Shadman and Cavalry Ground areas were reported closed at different times through the day.
Ahmed said the store in Shadman was found closed during the inspection at around 10:30am. “While the store’s shutter was down, the staff was busy rearranging items,” he said. “We askedthem to continue serving the consumers while arranging the items.”
Ahmed said he would launch an inquiry into closure of some stores. “We are making inspection rounds and addressing complaints,” he said.
USC authorities said the audit was conducted at the end of June every year. But this year with the beginning of the month of Ramazan coinciding with the annual audit, the authorities said they had initiated the Ramazan package and subsidised prices a week ahead of the holy month to save the consumers from any impact on account of the audit.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 1st, 2014.
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