Pakistan is facing the brunt of high prices of oil and everyday commodities and rising food inflation. The Pakistan Bureau of Statistics said inflation continues to rise, standing at 9.2% in October, a four-month high. Meanwhile, the PTI-led government jacked up petroleum prices by up to Rs8.14 per litre with immediate effect to ensure revival of the IMF programme.
Prices of essential commodities and food items have broken all records, hurting the economy as well as the people. All sorts of price indices including the consumer price index (CPI), sensitive price index (SPI), wholesale price index (WPI) have crossed all records in the last three years.
It also went against Finance Adviser Shaukat Tarin and Planning Minister Asad Umar’s prediction last week that inflation numbers would show a downward trend from September. On the other hand, Tarin reportedly said global commodity prices “are not in my control”, perhaps forgetting that using subsidies to lessen the impact of global price hikes is very much within the government’s control.
It is worth mentioning here that the government has also failed to act on past promises to manage the prices of essential food items, such as the unfulfilled assurance that duties and taxes on cooking oil would be cut soon. The PTI government has failed miserably to control rising inflation. In the last three years, the prices of food items have gone beyond the purchasing power of the people.
Rising oil prices in the intentional market can justify the increasing petroleum prices, but it is unreasonable for flour, sugar and other foodstuffs, which are Pakistan’s own products, to reach double the price. Domestic agriculture output should have compensated for international supply chain issues, but unfortunately, due to flawed policies, this has not been the case.
Prime Minister Imran Khan recently announced a relief package to mitigate the impact of inflation. Judging by the facts of this announcement, this Rs120 billion relief package is not for everyone but for those whose income is less than Rs 31,000 and who are registered in the Ehsaas Ration Program.
Apart from political issues, inflation has become a major challenge for the government and in the next elections, price rises may prove to be the biggest obstacle in the PTI’s election campaign.
