Karachi: An ordinance has been promulgated in Sindh to give emergency powers to government officials to strictly keep a check on the prices of essential products during the month of Ramadan.
For the first time in six years, Sindh Governor Kamran Khan Tessori signed “The Sindh Essential Com-modities Price Control and Prevention Hoarding (Amendment) Ordinance-2023”, empowering officials to sternly deal with the retailers involved in profiteering and hoarding.
It is the first ordinance promulgated by the provincial government of Chief Minister, Syed Murad Ali Shah. An ordinance is promulgated when the Sindh Assembly is not in session for immediately handling any legislative issue. The concerned consumers often complain about the massive increase in the prices of food products and edible items during Ramadan.
The new ordinance has empowered the price control officials to raid, search, seize and auction the products whose prices have been illegally jacked up by retailers to fleece the customers.
The ordinance also empowers the district administration officials to order the detention of corrupt shopkeepers and traders.
The fine to be imposed on the retailers by the officials for not displaying the official rates of the essential products and jacking up their prices has been increased to Rs100,000.
The CM thanked the Governor for quickly signing the ordinance proposed by his government for providing due emergency relief to the people during Ramadan.
He said that later on the Sindh Assembly would also adopt the ordinance to make these amendments to the price control system a permanent feature.
The Governor soon after the promulgation of the ordinance visited a busy market in downtown Karachi to personally check the prices of the essential products.
He later told journalists at a press conference that mere promulgation of the ordinance was not enough as the officials concerned had to leave their offices and visit markets continuously to ensure that essential products were available to the consumers in accordance with the official rate list.
He said the officials had to act fast to save the sheer exploitation of the consumers during Ramadan as the people couldn’t afford to purchase essential food items.
