KARACHI: Sugar prices have gone up by Rs. 42 per kg in just three months.
The Sugar Advisory Board recommended Rs. 7.82 increase in per kg sugar price around April 26, 2023, which was later notified as well. Now according to the reports, SAB recommended these prices after consulting the Ministry of Food Security and Research and the Pakistan Sugar Mills Association (PSMA).
While some suggest PSMA had asked for more time, sugar mills argue they were in fact neither consulted nor heard. Later PSMA filed a petition in Lahore High Court (LHC) on the grounds that it’s a provincial matter post-18th amendment and secondly, these prices can’t be fixed without consulting PSMA. The LHC granted a stay against the enforcement of the sugar price notification and prices are not on the rise.
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Sugar prices in retail have gone up to Rs. 140 per kg in three months while the wholesale prices have risen by up to Rs. 2,000 per 50 kg bag. Critics blame sugar mills for lining up their pockets with Rs. 15 billion in three months by hiding behind the court injunction, and it can go up to Rs. 35 billion if the injunction stays till September.
