Ramazan bazaar plans hit roadblock

Express Tribune

24-02-2025

The district administration's negotiations with the traders and the Grocery Merchants Association regarding setting up affordable Ramazan bazaars have 'failed', with the latter refusing to set up special stalls for selling sugar at government rates.
According to the association, the district administration and district market committees should set up affordable Ramazan bazaars and sugar mills to sell sugar at the stalls. Following the failure of these negotiations, the government has decided that larger cities, where model bazaars have been established, will now host Ramazan bazaars, while smaller cities without model bazaars will set up facilitation bazaars.
However, with only six days remaining until the start of Ramazan, no preparations have been made so far.
Rizwan Shaukat, the general secretary of the Central Grocery Merchants Association and Suleman Pervez Butt, its patron, are of the view that setting up affordable Ramazan bazaars is not the responsibility of the traders as it's the duty of the district market committee. Sugar mills and sugar dealers should sell 'subsidised' sugar at [government] stalls, he says and adds traders will focus on their own business during Ramazan.
On the other hand, the government has instructed that in model and facilitation bazaars, all stalls will be allocated to wholesale dealers who will sell grocery items and Sehri items at wholesale rates. Negotiations are currently underway between the district administration and wholesale dealers, and their reactions have been mixed.
Due to the district administration's poor policies, there will be no subsidised Sehri items available for the public this year. The administration has only decided to increase the number of price magistrates. All tehsildars, deputy tehsildars, revenue officers, and senior patwaris will be given the temporary title of price control magistrates for 30 days, effective from the 1st to the 30th of Ramazan.
In Rawalpindi, where Sunday, Tuesday, and Friday bazaars are typically held, daily bazaars will now be allowed from the 1st to the 29th of Ramazan. These bazaars will be set up at Committee Chowk, Allama Iqbal Park Area, Haidri Chowk, Dhoke Hassu, Naya Katariyan, Gulzar Quaid, Morgah, Adiala Road, Chakri Road, Chungi 22, and Chohar Chowk.