Hotel and Restaurant Association (HRA) on Monday announced to increase the prices of ‘roti and naan’ and fix the new price at Rs 6 per roti (bread) and Rs 7 per (naan) respectively. According to Chairman of the Association Wahid Kashmiri decision to this effect was taken at an emergent meeting. He said different steps have inflated the prices of flour and maida which had forced them to increase prices of roti and naan. Meanwhile, Tanoors in the city have increased the prices of naan and khameeri roti up to Rs 08 per piece.
Meanwhile, the flour millers have also urged the provincial government to start releasing wheat from official godowns on subsidised rates as increase in the electricity tariff for industrial and commercial consumers, hike in sales tax rate and upward trend in the prices of wheat may force the flour millers to increase the price of 20 kilograms flour bag by Rs 20 per bag.
According to Pakistan Flour Mills Association (PFMA) former President Khalique Arshad that sudden increase of Rs 5.30 per unit in electricity tariff and one percent increase on sales tax on electricity bills and hike in other taxes have pushed the grinding cost up by Rs 10 to 12 per 20 kilogram bags. While increase in fuel prices have also added another over Rs 5 per bag, he added and said that thus the price of the bag would reach to Rs 780 from present Rs 760 per bag.
He also said that stoppage of supply of subsidised wheat by the provincial government after end of the sacred month of Ramazan has also pushed the prices of the commodity in the market upward. He claimed that now wheat prices have increased to Rs 1400 per maund from Rs 1380 per maund.
