Chowrangi

“Babu Jee, yeah khajoorain tu ap ko 300 rupay kilo he milain gi, leni hai tu lain, nahin tu time na zaya karain.” And I chose to not waste the time of that bloody date seller. I encounter the same reaction when I used to dare to manage flour, pulses, fruits, and other edible items yesterday. The shop-keepers had gone apathetic animals, and wholesalers didn’t even entertain me, when they sensed I was just a petty consumer trying to save a rupee or two.

In Pakistan, we seem to practice the rituals of an Islamic state only for all the parochial reasons. It is all right to point fingers and gasp at people who don’t pray five times a day, or close their businesses for Taraveeh, but hoarding and exploitation, that too in a month meant to be the holiest of all for Muslims, seems to go unnoticed on the radar of piety.

Quick to criticize the western societies for its indecencies and lewdness, we tend to ignore the good things practiced there, like the price drops on all special occasions, such as Christmas or Easter. There needs to be a concerted effort, by both the government and the citizens, to ensure that prices, if not lowered (that has become impossible in Pakistan), are at least frozen in order to facilitate the masses and give them breathing room — at least for one month. Efforts by the government need to be more effective in that all those who chose to ignore price lists should be dealt with in an uncompromising fashion.

This effort also needs to be more widespread to ensure complete compliance. As far as the citizens go, they too need to accept some responsibility for this cause, perhaps from vigilance committees to monitor their local stores and report any illegal price hikes to the authorities concerned.

Other posts by Commoner

• Habitual Condemnation - November 21st, 2008
• Sandwitched Population - November 21st, 2008
• Clear the Dust - November 20th, 2008
• Exactly What They Want - November 20th, 2008
• Punjab Heats Up - November 19th, 2008
• Eyeball to Eyeball - November 18th, 2008
• No Surprises There - November 18th, 2008
• Yousuf Ready to Leave "Power" - November 18th, 2008
• OGRA Website Hacked By Indian Hackers - November 17th, 2008
• Friends Of Pakistan Again Disappoints - November 17th, 2008