Imran Khan orders strict action against unusual price hike in Pakistan

Prime Minister Imran Khan asked authorities to take stern action against hoarders and unprecedented prices hike without sufficient cause, authorities reported on Friday.

In a meeting here on Thursday, Khan ordered provincial and federal authorities to launch a special campaign against the unusual price hike and to conduct surprise raids at wholesale markets, Dawn reported.

Khan has said that effective implementation of local and special laws concerning efficient service delivery and relief to the general public was one of the prime responsibilities of the field administration.

The Prime Minister added that under the special campaign, a strategy would be devised by all concerned stakeholders to implement price control laws effectively from the wholesale markets to retail shops.

He further stressed that all the authorities concerned should make price and market control committees more effective, besides taking stern action against the perpetrators under law.

Khan directed the field officers to frequently visit the wholesale markets and be present at the time of auctions to determine realistic rates.

In addition, he asked the related institutions to frequently conduct surprise checks in the districts and directed them to report on a daily basis the implementation of directives to the chief secretary and the chief minister concerned.

Thursday's meeting decided that the price control committees would notify the rates of essential commodities regularly and the same should be implemented effectively.

The recent increase in inflation has made it hard for people who are already facing difficulty in making ends meet amid throes of Pakistan's cash-strapped economy. Recently released surveys from independent organisations show that more and more people are compromising on health and education due to a decrease in their purchasing power.

In its latest available monthly report released in early June, the country's Federal Bureau of Statistics said the inflation increased 9.1 per cent in May 2019 as compared to May 2018, Xinhua reported.

The action comes ahead of the scheduled meeting of International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Washington on July 3 in which the global money lender is expected to consider three-year 'extended fund facility' of USD six billion for Pakistan.

Sources familiar with the matter told Dunya News that Pakistan has adopted a tight monetary and fiscal policy stance based on all terms and conditions of the global moneylender in order to secure a three-year bailout package.

The bailout package will help Pakistan to pay its external debts, recover from its fiscal deficit, keep foreign exchange reserves to the equivalent of three months of imports and curb further devaluation of the rupee, sources added.