Chowrangi

There is not price control whatsoever in Pakistan. Companies, wholesellers, retailers, and even the street-mongers, all have their own rates of the commodities. You would different rates for the same products in the adjacent shops. There is not check and balance, seems to be there. It solely depends upon the will and mood of the shop keeper to ask for any price he wants for a given product.

One hears that there are present some price control committees, and price checking teams whose responsibilities are to keep tabs on the undue price hikes and self-created rate list. This is more rampant in regards of open-packing things. But you would even find the price difference in the packed materials, whose packing contains the embossed price from the companies, but who could argue with these spineless shop keepers.

This un-justifiable price difference is especially present in the prices of fruits and vegetables. You would the same “Chonsa” or “Langra” mango on different prices on different shops. Even the peddlers have different rates. You would find the “Chonsa” mango of prices Rs. 30, 35,40,50 in the same marketplace. Upon asking from the hawkers, as why there is a difference, there answer is that our product is “better”, but human eye is unable to differentiate between the products, which more or less is obtained from the same lot, unloaded from the same truck.

There also exists a specie known as shopkeeper committee, which ensures the congenial liaison between the market and the customer. This specie is rarely seen, and approachable. This wholly comprises of some of the most prominent (read rogue) shop keepers, and there sole purpose seems to protect the price hikes, encroachments and high-handedness of their fellas.

Its high time government should pay attention to these un-justifiable and cruel proceedings. Ok, I admikt, the previous sentence is a beaten sentence, but what the hell, this article and its title and everything in it is also beaten and have been said by many time and again.

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• So They Parted - August 26th, 2008
• New Alignments - August 24th, 2008
• Vindicated Operartion in Swat - August 24th, 2008
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