LAHORE: People on Monday expressed concern over the hike in flour price and urged the government to make special arrangements for immediate reversal of the hike.
According to market sources, flour mills and wholesalers have increased the price of wheat flour by Rs 70 per 20 kilogrammes (kg) bag.
Abdul Rauf, a resident of Mozang, said that prices of sugar, pulses, rice and other food commodities were already very high, and now a sudden increase in the prices of flour had added to the woes of the common people.
A senior official in the Punjab Food Department said that flour mill owners had announced a sudden increase of Rs 70 per 20 kg bag, which was an injustice to the consumers.
On the other hand, retailers said that they were getting only two rupees profit per 20 kg flour bag, and even then, they were facing protests from consumers.
Maryam Rasheed, a housewife, questioned that if basic food items were outside the reach of most people, then how could people belonging to lower income groups survive under the given circumstances?
Sudden increases in prices of different food items was a routine in major cities of the country, which was not acceptable, she added.
