Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry said on Tuesday that the prices of commodities in the country were constantly falling and inflation in Pakistan is lower than in Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and India.
Talking to media after federal cabinet meeting in Islamabad on Tuesday, he said that it was ridiculous to criticize the government on drawing comparison of Pakistan with regional countries on inflation.
“We are not drawing comparison of the country with France and UK; rather it is being compared with Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and India,†he added.
He said there had been inflation in the country for salaries class, but there was a need to adjust with the situation.
There has been an additional income of Rs 400 billion in agriculture sector this year, he said, adding the comparison could be done in contemporary times instead of past.
“There is need to draw comparison of income and expenditures to know the exact situation [about inflation],†he noted.
Fawad also appreciated the Sindh government for taking some steps to control daily use items’ prices in Karachi and Hyderabad. Now, a bag of 20 kg wheat flour was being sold at Rs 1,456 in Karachi and at Rs 1,316 in Hyderabad. It was available in the rest of the country at Rs 1100, he added.
The minister said per kilogram sugar was available at Rs 90 across the country except Karachi and Islamabad where the sweetener was being sold at Rs 97 per kg.
Upto Rs 4 per kg reduction in the sugar price was also expected in the coming days, he added.
Fawad said vegetable oil was being sold at Rs 399 per kg across the country. Though, it was included in the list of essential items, but being imported from abroad and if its price would increase in international market, definitely, it would also have impact in Pakistan, he added.
About lynching of a Sri Lankan manager by the mob in Sialkot, he said the Cabinet strongly condemned the incident which was against Islamic teachings and tantamount to distorting the image of Pakistan.
The PM and the Cabinet directed the Punjab government to start the trial of the arrested accused as soon as possible and take steps to punish them, he maintained.â€The Islamic Republic of Pakistan is committed to protecting the rights of every individual belonging to minorities,†he remarked.
“The way Pakistan’s society and government have reacted to this tragedy shows that we are very different from India and some other countriesâ€, he noted.
He said in India, such incidents against Muslims happened on a daily basis but its government was reluctant to take any action against the culprits.
The whole nation was united on the Sialkot incident as it was on the APS tragedy, he said, adding every citizen of Pakistan was condemning this act.
