Hike in prices of milk pinches common man’s pocket

Neeraj Bagga

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Amritsar, August 19

The hike in prices of packed milk has dealt another blow to the common man who is already finding it difficult to make ends meet with inflation already touching the sky.

Already hit by the overall food inflation, they found the hike another shocker. Harjot Kaur, a housewife, says, “Middle-income groups are not finding reprieve from any quarter. Post the Covid-19 pandemic, the common man is bearing the brunt on every front, be it kitchen, transportation, education, medical, etc.”

The government has failed to alleviate the sufferings of people, who are already buried under the ever-rising weight of inflation. Instead of helping families belonging to the lower and middle-income sections, the Central and state governments have always passed the burden of rising taxes on to consumers.

The price hike triggered angry reactions from residents who are already reeling under soaring inflation. Harpreet Singh, a resident, said Verka effected a hike in prices of packed milk followed by Amul. He said, “The government does not have any plan to contain the soaring inflation and they do not have the wherewithal to raise their income either. Despite several claims, there is an insufficient number of jobs available in the market and except government employees, who are insulated from inflation with dearness allowance, employees in private and unorganised sectors are worst-hit.

Gurdev Singh, General Manager, Verka milk plant, said there were multiple factors behind the rise in milk prices. First of all, reduction in milk collection led to at least a 10 per cent shortfall in daily milk procurement from dairy farmers following the spread of lumpy skin disease among cattle.

As a result, dairy farmers are reporting a decline in daily milk collection, which in turn has forced them to increase prices. Verka had already raised the procurement price of milk, rise in transportation and packaging material cost. The cattle feeding cost alone has increased by an approximate 20 per cent as compared to last year. All these factors led to the hike in prices of packed milk.