Inflation pushing people to the edge

The unabated rise in prices that we have witnessed for months now has really started to take its toll on low- and middle-income groups. Two separate reports published by this newspaper on April 11 reveal the story of ordinary people, who have either been compelled to stop eating meat and fish altogether (if not more food items), stop sending money to their village homes to their parents (who are being forced to live off of loans), cut down on expenditure for their children, and worry about how they can afford basic medical treatment should they fall sick. Amid such suffering, the lack of urgency in action and legitimate concern and sympathy shown by the government towards people is shameful.

For months the media has reported on how terribly the people have been suffering. Reportedly, prices of rice, flour, pulses, oil, fish, meat, vegetables, soap and milk rose by 12 percent in February. Prices of other essentials including edible oil, sugar, red lentils, eggs and onions have risen by 10 to 40 percent in the last one year. If the government, in any way, had an effective market monitoring system, how could this have happened? Experts have been discussing possible solutions to the unbearable rise in prices, which they have said can be mitigated despite unfavourable external factors—if the government adopts proper policies and implements them correctly. And yet, government officials mostly seem to have shut their eyes and stuffed their ears. What else explains their lack of earnestness in taking meaningful action to check inflation and help the suffering people? Is it contempt?

The size of our market dictates that it cannot be controlled by enacting laws alone. It has to be backed up by enforcement. When people are suffering to the extent that they have been, enforcing price controls should have been the government's number one priority. But in its absence, trade syndicates have been having a field day again, hiking prices of essentials during Ramadan.

We urgently call on the government to wake up from its slumber and take note of the reality unfolding before its eyes. Given the situation, having a few sporadic Open Market Sales is not enough. It is not sufficient to cover many of the poor and almost the entirety of the middle class who also need help at this stage.

As around 70 percent of the population, who don't have any financial resilience, are not covered by the government's safety net programmes, it urgently needs to expand its social safety net programmes, and ensure that during this great crisis, these programmes are kept corruption free. For this, it should involve all stakeholders from society. Additionally, it needs to provide services such as electricity, water and gas at affordable prices through better governance and transparency in these sectors.