Chemists, store owner booked for selling sanitisers at high rates

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, May 23

After taking medical store owners to task for overpricing masks and sanitisers declared under the Essential Commodities Act, the Vigilance Bureau is now contemplating similar action against grocery store owners for fleecing people by selling essentials at higher prices.

He said as per the orders of the government, the vigilance has launched a campaign against chemists and medical store owners who were found selling masks and hand sanitisers at higher rates. The government has fixed the prices of masks and sanitisers and it appeared that some greedy people found an opportunity to earn easy money at the time of unprecedented health crisis following Covid-19 pandemic.

On Friday, the Vigilance Bureau range catering Amritsar, Tarn Taran, Gurdaspur and Pathankot districts had registered three cases against medical and the grocery store proprietors involved in black marketing and hoarding of sanitisers and masks in the border belt. They were booked for fraud under the Essential Commodities Act.

He said Amrik Singh of Seron village in Tarn Taran, owner of Khaira Karyana Store, was booked for selling sanitisers at higher prices. Similarly Sukhinder Singh of Seron village in Tarn Taran running a medical store was held by the Vigilance for overpricing sanitisers. In another incident, Balwinder Singh of Janta Medical Store and Kahnuwan in Gurdaspur was held for similar offence. The vigilance recovered sanitisers from their possession.

He said the main aim of the drive was to ensure proper supply of sanitisers and masks to the general public at government approved rates.