Editorial
Spiraling price line
Long on promise, short on delivery
Cost of all major items of food have been on the rise continually for the last several months. Admittedly we are part of the free marketing system but surely that should not be interpreted or looked upon as licentious marketing. In the recent past government had changed ministers with the promise that prices would be controlled and brought down. But goal remains as elusive as ever. We find the situation disquieting. Clearly it appears that there is no firm law nor any regulatory instrument in place for the government to check the continuous rise and fluctuation in the prices of essentials. At one time, some in the administration itself talked about a syndicated cartel being responsible for such price hikes. Thus the question is, being aware of the reasons and the sources of the price hikes, why no action has been taken in bringing the prices down? We strongly believe that given the honesty of purpose and commitment, the administration should be able to tackle the matter with a considerable degree of success. There is practically no supervision of any kind over either retail or wholesale markets. It seems that most traders, driven by sheer motive of "profiteering", fix the prices at will. In the past we have seen both the BADC and TCB play important roles directly or indirectly in keeping the prices of essential commodities under reasonable control. It is not understandable as to why these organisations are not allowed to play that role any longer. Today's high prices of essentials have badly affected the lives of majority of the people. We find government's apathy in dealing with this vital issue of public interest totally unacceptable. We urge the administration to gear up all its resources to arrest this unnatural spiraling of prices without any further loss of time.
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