LPG prices soar to Rs650 per kg as govt fails to bring them down

LAHORE – LPG prices in the country have skyrocketed, while the government has been unable to bring them down.

The rate set by OGRA is Rs280, while the rate proposed by the federal minister is Rs425. The market rate is Rs550 to Rs650 per kilogram.

Expensive LPG has made flour, pulses, chicken, meat and milk costlier, and the public is demanding that the government control prices.

Chicken meat has reached Rs600 to Rs700 per kg, while onions have climbed to Rs200 to Rs250 per kg.

Flour is most expensive in Karachi, where a 20kg bag now costs Rs3,540, while in Lahore the price has reached Rs3,133.

Annual inflation across the country has risen to nearly 12 percent, while weekly inflation recorded an increase of 6.5 percent.

According to the weekly report issued by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, LPG became about 22 percent costlier and chicken 12 percent costlier over the past week. Over the past year, the price of LPG has risen by 107 percent and that of onions by about 73 percent.

The report says electricity prices have risen by 58 percent and petrol by 44 percent over the past year, while chicken has become 39 percent costlier and flour 36 percent costlier.