The unusual raise in chicken prices is stated to be short supply. Market sources say over 50 per cent poultry products are being smuggled to Afghanistan, Iran and some other neighbouring countries for profiteering, reports PakistanObserver.

A government servant Aftab told APP that chicken was the only commodity which they could buy and afford because of its low price. But, now, he said, we are unable to purchase chicken meat due to its high rates.

A house wife, Amina said her husband used to bring chicken meat thrice a week but now he cannot afford chicken meat within limited income.

Meanwhile, a wholesale dealer namely Noman at Peoples Colony Market said poultry cartel is active behind poultry prices. They fix poultry rates on daily basis. “We are at their mercy and the district administration paying no heed to this end,” he added.

When contacted All Pakistan Poultry Association (APPA), representative told that in every poultry farm owing to long spells of power outages, thousands of birds had perished. Most of the owners, he said, had already closed their farms due to deficit.

He linked the price hike to the shortfall in the supply of poultry bird from the farms in the last few days.