Karachi, August 10, 2022 (PPI-OT):The Union of Small and Medium Enterprises (UNISAME) has invited the attention of the price monitoring cells all over the country to the profiteering by the retailers on the pretext of inflation and petrol price hike as they have increased their prices of food and merchandise items non proportionately.
President UNISAME Zulfikar Thaver said this is unfair and it can be counted as a malpractice.
He said the common man is very badly affected and is paying the price of the malpractices of these retailers who are not sparing any item be it grocery, edibles, perishable or non perishable food items and also general merchandise. He added that the pharmaceutical companies have also increased their prices but the since the chemists are compelled to follow the indicated retail prices on each pack they are unable to charge more.
The worst affected are the fixed income and salaried class who have fixed income and they cannot manage the rapid increase in prices of every commodity under the sun. He said the salaried class owners of scooters have started going in buses and are not in a position to have one square meal and the day they have to visit a doctor for any member of the family they skip that one meal also. It is difficult for this segment to survive. They have started selling their assets.
The traders have increased their prices much more than the actual increase in their own cost and likewise the services sector, for that matter , the tailors, electricians, plumbers, masons have also increased their rates. The transporters have also increased their commutation charges but the salaried class is left to suffer badly without any inflation allowance.
The UNISAME Council (UC) members have urged the government to take strict notice of the exorbitant price increase by the retailers and take them to task by secret surprise visits and penalize them. UC also urged the Consumers Protection societies and associations to play their role and set matters right.
For more information, contact:
Union of Small and Medium Enterprises (UNISAME)
75/1 3rd Commercial Street, Phase IV, D.H.A.,
Karachi, Pakistan
Tel: +92-21-35884225-6
Fax: +92-21-35380642
Cell: +92-300-8245307, +92-321-8245307
Email: unisame@gmail.com
Website: http://www.unisame.org/