Prime Minister Imran Khan on Saturday said the government would use all resources at the disposal of the state to bring down food prices from the coming week.
Facing rising criticism from the masses as well as the opposition over the unchecked rise in food prices, the government has taken several initiatives to bring prices under control. The federal cabinet has already formed the National Price Monitoring Committee; which recently discussed the “the abnormal variation in the prices of perishable items such as tomatoes, potatoes, onions as well as other essential items like wheat, sugar and chicken” on the PM’s orders.
The government has also launched crackdowns against hoarders and smugglers to stabilize food supply and prices.
These measures are necessary as the prices faced by the lowest income quintile in the first quarter of FY21 have registered an increase. The Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI) has jumped from 2.5% in FY19 to 12.5%.
Rising food prices had pushed inflation to 10.7% in the last fiscal year, which is now projected to slow to 7.5% this fiscal year.
