Overpricing of masks, sanitisers to attract penal action, says admn

Manmeet Singh Gill

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, March 31

The district administration has warned medicine sellers against overpricing face masks and sanitisers.

The administration stated that overpricing may attract a minimum imprisonment of three years and a maximum of seven years under Section 7 of the Essential Commodities Act, 1955.

District Food and Civil Supplies Controller Lakhwinder Singh said as per the notification issued by the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, the prices of two-layer is fixed at Rs8 per piece and the price of three-layer mask is fixed at Rs10 per piece.

The price of 200 gm sanitisers is fixed at Rs100. He said as per the notification, the orders would remain effective till June 30 and any shopkeeper, wholesaler or retailer found overcharging would be booked for violating the Essential Commodities Act.

With civil and police administration encouraging public to wear masks and use sanitisers, the shortage of these items is being faced from the past many days. To cope up with the shortage of masks, those made of cloth are also being sold in market. A few organisations are also distributing these.

Two chemists arrested for fleecing customers

The police on Tuesday nabbed two medical store owners — Gaurav Kakkar and his father Pawan Kakkar — for black marketing of hand sanitisers.

They have been booked under Sections 420, 120-B and 188 of the IPC and Sections 7 of the Prevention of Corruption Act. DSP Gurbinderbir Singh, in a statement issued here, said the police got a tip-off that the suspects were selling 400ml hand sanitisers bottle at Rs 450, whereas the District Food and Civil Supply Controller has fixed its price at Rs 200.

He said a policeman was sent in civil to the shop to purchase a bottle of hand sanitiser. When the shop owners handed over a bill of Rs 450, the police raided the shop and confiscated five 400ml bottles, 10 bottles of 60ml each and 20 bottles of 30ml volume filled with sanitising liquid.

The DSP urged the people to inform the police if they find anyone indulging in black marketing of essential commodities.