The TCB and BDR outlets opened to cope with the price spiral by beefing up the supplies have to go some way before making their presence felt.

Obviously, there are factors that have made the market behave so erratically. The heavy late monsoon rain across the country and the opposition programmes have had a paralytic effect on transportation of goods. Then there is the tendency of hoarding among traders which can, and does, create an artificial crisis. Finally, extortion at different points make the businessmen mark up their prices.

That said, the government could take corrective steps, at least in some areas, to prevent the prices going beyond people's reach. For example, extortion, mostly by people flaunting political clout, is a problem that the government can eliminate to a great extent by enforcing the law.

The businessmen appear to have been under the impression that the TCB would do the bulk of the import trade. However, good planning and facilitating the private sector to complement the government efforts are needed to stabilise the market. In other words, the supply side of the market has to be strengthened by all means.

The consumers are suffering but there is apparently nobody to take the responsibility for the oppressive price hike. The retailers blame the wholesalers for hoarding and the wholesalers say that it is the retailers who are trying to make extra profit at the cost of the buyers. The government, for its part, claims that in a market economy it has little to do to control prices. So, who will come to people's rescue?

One would expect that all the parties concerned would show a greater commitment to the people during this month of self-abstinence and refrain from indulging in dubious business practices that tend to destabilise the market.