PAT issues Fact Paper on inflation and spurious edibles

PAT Punjab has issued a Fact Paper on ever increasing inflation and unchecked proliferation of spurious and substandard food items. PAT has said that Punjab government and its allied departments have completely failed to chock the supply of hundreds thousands litters of spurious milk and hundreds of mounds of dead meat on the daily basis. All efforts to check this heinous crime has been limited to the paperwork of disposing off the a few thousands litters of milk. Utility charges and health charges have increased by 5 % and 15 % respectively. 52 % of population is suffering from malnutrition due to expensive food and this figure includes 40 million children.

The Fact Paper was issued by Bisharat Jaspal, the president of PAT Central Punjab, Fiaz Warraich, the president of PAT South Punjab and Brigadier (r) Muhammad Mushtaq, the president of PAT North Punjab in the special meeting arranged in main secretariat.

The PAT leaders lamented, while issuing the Fact Paper that government instead of controlling the prices was increasing the petroleum prices again and again. The Bureau of Statistics has also confirmed the mounting inflation. The poor man who is already living from hand to mouth is being forced to pay more for purchasing edibles. According to Fact Paper, during the last 3 year of Sharif’s government, there is an increase of Rs. 25 per kg of milk, Rs. 10 per kg of yogurt, Rs. 100 per kg of beef, Rs.110 per kg of mutton and 20 to 30% increase in the prices of potatoes, tomatoes, pulses and vegetables was also recorded.

They said that the Government and its allied departments have utterly failed to ensure the quality of edibles. Performance is being shown with the help of negligible fines and newspaper stories. The leaders further added that there is seal of 4.3 million litters milk only in Lahore division and Livestock department, Food department and Agriculture department have estimated the total milk production is around 3 million litters. They wondered how that gap of 1.3 litters was being filled and asked the relevant authority to trace the location where spurious milk was being produced. The institutions are silent on this issue and this poison is killing the future generations.

The leaders further said that the act of making spurious milk is akin to terrorism. Those who prepare substandard milk should be punished in the same way as those who prepare the suicide jackets. They revealed that hepatitis, myocardial and stomach diseases have assumed the shape of epidemic due to consumption of substandard edibles and spurious milk. The fake stunts and spurious medicines are proving to be the last nails in the coffin of the people. They said that it was impossible to even imagine the sale & purchase of substandard food, spurious milk and dead meat in any democratic and civilized society but our corrupt and visionless leaders had turned this country jungle where principles of might is right being applied everywhere. The leaders pointed out in their Fact Paper that during last 3 years, Punjab Assembly had not even discussed the issue of substandard food in its proceedings and that revelation could be the best barometer to judge how much our government was concerned about the public health and security of the life and property of the masses.