The real measure of the rating of any economy, society and government is the change associated with the common people, especially the downtrodden sections, in which food, clothing, shelter, electricity, gas, water and other essentials are within the reach of the lowest income person.

It is a common observation that when oil, gas, electricity and the dollar are expensive, general inflation engulfs the entire society, which has its own reasons, but the inefficiency is that even when these things are cheap, inflation still occurs. There is no shortage. Once something becomes expensive, its value does not decrease. For example, when petrol diesel became cheaper, the transporters took advantage of it, but the fares did not decrease.

There has been no reduction in the fares of especially motorcycle rickshaws, Suzuki and taxis. The government has once again reduced the price of petrol by Rs 8 so it should now take concrete steps to reduce the prices of all basic necessities of life including transport fares, food items etc. For the next fortnight, the new price of petrol has been fixed at Rs 259 34 paise per litre, while the prices of high speed diesel kerosene and light diesel have not been changed.

A disturbing news for the people who are oppressed by inflation is that another lightning bomb is ready to be dropped on them. The Central Power Purchasing Agency has submitted a request to Nepra to raise the price of electricity by Rs 5.62 per unit. The approval of the application will burden the consumers with more than 49 billion rupees.

 Onion prices have become uncontrollable across the country, which is being sold at 240 rupees per kg in the local market. The common man has only one question from the ruler of power: when will his problems be removed?

In a nutshell, if the government remained unable to check inflationary trends, the masses will face a worst situation. The sky-rocketing prices of essential commodities are a matter of serious concern as the common man is virtually unable to meet his kitchen expenses and has been running from pillar to post to make both ends meet.

A recent survey says that seventy per cent of the household budget is spent on kitchen items and only 30 per cent left to meet other expenses like utility bills, education, medicines etc. According to newspapers reports, the prices of flour which is a staple food of Pakistan are also going to sky-rocket as retail prices of flour are going to increase further after millers have raised the prices by as many as Rs11 per kg. The new wheat crop will arrive in the market in April in Sindh and till then the prices of flour are going to only rise. Prices of other essential commodities are also beyond the reach of the common man. Chicken meat is prices are at Rs410 to Rs. 440 per kg, eggs are being sold at Rs300 per dozen, while mutton and beef is being sold for Rs1600 per kg and Rs950 per kg respectively. Pulses, rice and other grain prices are beyond reach of the common man. One liter Milk price is Rs200 per litre, curd for Rs220 per kg, ghee for Rs550 per kg whereas white chickpeas are being sold at Rs400 per kg. Though we never lived in hunky-dory times before, but after the biblical floods, majority of population seems to concerned about high food prices and shrinking sources of income. The fact that one in every five people in our country go to bed on an empty stomach is a grave  reminder of rife food shortage in Pakistan. The economic impacts and supply chain disruptions along with the biblical floods have  only aggravated the situation.  Now the question is what should be done to control the food woes.  The only viable solution to this never-ending despair lies in improving per acre yield, for which we need to focus on our agriculture sector which is the backbone of our economy. No doubts about that. There is also need for handling the wheat stocks in provinces as our country used to see artificial shortage of food items deliberated by the mafias by hoarding the major produce and creating a chaos like situation by not supply them in the market  with a view to increase prices of their produces.  Usually this is done by the middlemen mafia which needs to be tamed with introduction of string of strict measures. The fact that  annual CPI inflation has touched a record high of  26.6pc YoY in October as compared to a 49-year high of 27.3pc in August last when the country was lashed by rains and floods, is still fueling the inflationary trends and more increased is feared as the economy is on the down trend. Meanwhile, the shopkeepers and the middlemen mafia are also making life hell for the common man as they contribute their bit to high prices of essential items. What is needed is that the provincial governments in respective provinces should alert the district administration to come hard on profiteers and force them to sell commodities on fixed prices. Meanwhile, the inflationary trends are at their peak once again and a latest report says that the prices of essential commodities have recorded a rise of up to 28 percent, which is a matter of serious concern. In this way, the over inflation on the weekly has also touched the same level year-on-year since last month. According to the data of Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS), Inflation has risen 0.48pc week-on-week.  And what is more concerning is that the increase has been triggered by a sudden rise in the prices of eggs and chicken.

Eggs are being sold at Rs.400 per dozen. Prices of vegetables like onions, potatoes etc are also sky-rocketing. Overall, prices of nineteen essential items have shown inflationary trends. It may be recalled here that the short-term inflation as indicated by the Sensitive Price Indicator was registered at 28.67pc Year on Year basis (YoY). Just imagine, it has touched a record high level of unprecedented 45.5pc in Sept last.

Published in The Daily National Courier, January, 20 2024

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