LAHORE: For the first time in the province’s history, prices of essential commodities have recorded a reduction of over 50 per cent during this Ramazan.
This was revealed in a special meeting chaired by Chief Minister Punjab Maryam Nawaz Sharif, here Tuesday.
The chief minister reviewed, one by one, the prices of fruits, vegetables, flour, chicken and other essential items across the province. She appreciated the performance of the entire team over the price reduction and urged citizens not to purchase goods from shops that do not display official rate lists.
The CM also directed authorities to further increase the supply of vegetables, fruits and other essential items in Lahore.
During the briefing, it was stated that onion prices have dropped to their lowest level since 2022, while the prices of ginger, garlic, lemons and other items have also declined. Compared to last year, a clear downward trend in essential commodity prices is being witnessed.
In the first five days, more than 3.5 million people visited 49 Ramazan Negahban bazaars, where 2.1 million tonnes of food items were sold. Citizens saved approximately Rs30 million through subsidised purchases at these bazaars.
For the first time, fruits, vegetables, flour and chicken are being made available in Murree at rates even lower than the Rawalpindi DC rates. Senior citizen camps have been established at the bazaars, facilitating around 10,000 elderly shoppers.
The meeting was informed that 1,549 sale points have been set up by flour mills across the province, where 10kg flour bags are being sold at a subsidised rate of Rs850. In the open market, 10kg flour bag is available at Rs905, while 20kg bag is being sold at Rs 1,810.
A total of 421 Negahban Ramazan dastarkhwans served iftar to 462,000 fasting individuals, offering chicken pulao, samosas, pakoras, fruit, water and dates. The monitoring of cooking centres preparing food for the dastarkhwans is also under way.
During Sehr and Iftar timings, the Punjab Food Authority conducted inspections at 9,440 locations and discarded 29,000kg of substandard food.
Price control magistrates, the Punjab Enforcement and Regulatory Authority and other teams carried out inspections at 338,000 points across the province. Fines amounting to nearly Rs37.5 million were imposed on 1,965 shopkeepers for not displaying rate lists and on 24,600 for overcharging.
Cases were registered against 313 violators, while 2,870 arrests were made.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2026
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