Last year, floods claimed 1,739 lives and destroyed 2 million homes, and political uncertainty hit Pakistan hard. One liter of milk in Pakistan costs 210 Pakistani riyals. It was Rs 190 two weeks ago. A kilo of chicken costs 78 Pakistani rupees. Last week, the price of one kg of chicken meat was Rs 620-650 per pack, which jumped up in a few days.
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In Pakistan, fuel prices also rose sharply within hours of the presentation of the budget by the Shehbaz Sharif government. Reports indicate that fuel prices are at an all-time high. A liter of petrol has gone up by 272 Pakistani rupees and diesel by 280 rupees. High fuel prices in inflation-ridden Pakistan are causing misery for the common man. Petrol has been hiked by Rs 22.20 per liter and diesel by Rs 17.20 per litre. The price of kerosene rose to Rs 202.73 per litre. Natural gas is also expensive.
The government of Pakistan had even increased the prices of goods sold through the Utility Stores Corporation, which provided goods to the public at lower prices than the public market. Reduction of subsidy made people miserable. Prices of wheat, sugar and ghee have increased by 25 to 62 percent. The limit of goods that can be purchased under subsidy has also been reduced.
Pictures of people being forced to use plastic balloons for cooking gas were circulated on social media due to the high cost of cooking gas. Pictures including LPG being stored in plastic bags show the distress of people due to non-availability of cooking gas cylinders.
