CHITRAL: The over population of the country has given wide range of demand for food items which has created markets for fake food items. Not only food items but many other articles of daily use are made in underground factories and supplied to agents which are carried to far flung areas of the country like Chitral where such products cannot be detected as # 2 fake items. The rural areas or the mountain area people have no option or have no knowledge about the originality of those items which are mostly meant for children and the suppliers transport such products to shop keepers where the vender sells the items at a price of their own free will. There is no price checking in distant regions of the province. The venders get desired price for those items but play a dangerous game against the health of children who are their chief end-customers.

The peddlers also reach distant valleys  and sell items like dry black tea at comparatively lower price than in the local shops. This dry tea is mostly a mixture of many kind of useless but crushed leaves and shells, dyed and packed as genuine item. The biscuits  and toffees also have the same brand. Chewing gums are the most favourite item of the kids but they are made from sub standard materials and supplied to selected shop keepers who never hesitate to sell such fake items for greed of charging high value but help wittingly in the disaster that visits the fragile immune system of children.

There should be active checking of the food items sold in the shops and the date of expiry must be checked because in the far flung areas expired items are sold and an illiterate mother knows nothing about the manufacture or expiry of items of daily use. There are hundreds of food items but the ones especially meant for kids don’t carry expiry date. The Food Authorities should visit village shops and look at the items in each shop or citizens’ committees be formed to check such items in their areas and the Food Authorities should think on such lines to control sale of fake and expired items. The peddlers must not be allowed to enter villages when the menfolk are out on their farms and the innocent women are around. This kind of approach by peddlers is against our social system. The peddlers are also drug smugglers and make money in the guise of food item sellers. .. Prof Rahmat Karim Baig, Chitral 05 Jul 2021