Pre-Eid profiteering has tightened the noose around consumers’ necks. Prices of almost all everyday commodities, including seasonal vegetables and fruits, have witnessed a steep increase of two percent to 31 percent over the last seven days.
Official price lists issued by the Lahore Market Committee (LMC) indicate that red and green chilies, lemons, cabbages and tomatoes are among the vegetables that showed the biggest price increase, owing to non-availability of effective price control. The prices of lemons and tomatoes have jumped up by Rs 25 and Rs 20, respectively, during the last seven days. Price lists show that while last Saturday lemons were being sold for Rs 80 per kg, they are now being sold at Rs 105 per kg, owing to high demand.
A similar trend was seen in the prices of tomatoes, which has been settled at Rs 86 per kg after an increase of Rs 20 per kg during the period under review. However, street vendors and retail shops are further exploiting the situation by overcharging by about 15 percent to 20 percent.
During Eidul Azha, demand for both green and red chilies usually witnesses a sharp increase. Traders have managed to inflate their prices by over 27 percent in merely a week’s time. Official figures show that the LMC had fixed the price of green chilies at Rs 55 per kg last Saturday. They are now being sold at Rs 70 to Rs 85 per kg in retail markets. At the same time, red chilies are available at Rs 350 to Rs 400 per kg, following an increase of Rs 50 to Rs 100 per kg. Onions are another ingredient whose consumption increases during Eid days. The increase in demand is reflected in its price, which has increased by over 10 percent to settle at Rs 48 per kg. However, consumers would find it hard to buy them at a fixed price, due to the high demand and rampant profiteering by traders.
According to the official price lists, cabbages, carrots, potatoes and peas are some other vegetables displaying an increasing price trend. Their prices have increased by Rs two to Rs 10 per kg in retail markets.
However, prices of garlic, ginger, spinach and cucumbers have shown a declining trend. LMC officials said prices of these commodities had declined because of surplus supply.
A similar trend was seen in the prices of seasonal fruits. Prices of good quality oranges, sweet lime and various varieties of apples showed an increase between 10 percent and 23 percent. However, market surveys showed that seasonal fruits could not be found at fixed prices in retail markets. Sweet lime and oranges were available at Rs 80 to Rs 100 per dozen, while their official prices were fixed at Rs 50 and Rs 66 per dozen, respectively.
Various varieties of apples were being sold for Rs 100 to Rs 160 per kg, pomegranate for Rs 100 to Rs 130 per kg and guavas for Rs 36 to Rs 55 per kg. Market surveys indicated that fruit vendors and shopkeepers were overcharging consumers about 35 percent to 60 percent. Official price lists are not displayed at shops and carts, allowing vendors to charge high rates freely.
Speaking to Pakistan Today, a greengrocer on Madina Road, Township, argued as to how a shopkeeper could sell vegetables and fruit below their own purchase price. He said due to inflation, the prices of all commodities had increased. Some commodities in the wholesale markets were being sold at higher rates than the retail price, he added. Retailers sold items of daily use only on a marginal profit, he said.
The exorbitant increase in the prices of essential commodities was a clear manifestation of poor governance, raising questions on the functioning of the price control systems of the provincial and district governments, as there was a marked difference between the official and retail prices, said a perturbed looking middle-aged woman at a city market.
