Write a paragraph on 'Price Hike' based on the following questions.

(a) What is causing the price hike? (b) Which goods or services are most affected by the price hike? (c) How is the price hike impacting consumers? (d) What are businesses and people doing to cope with the price hike? (e) What measures, if any, are being taken by the government or other organizations to address the price hike?

Price Hike

Price hike means rise in prices of essential commodities. It is a common phenomenon in our country. The prices of essential commodities are increasing by leaps and bounds. Indeed, price of daily commodities has gone beyond the reach of the common people. There are many causes of price hike. Insufficient supply of daily commodities is mainly responsible for price hike. Our population is increasing rapidly, but our food production is not increasing proportionately. For this, we do not get enough food in comparison to our increasing demands. Moreover, frequent natural disasters like flood, drought, cyclone, etc. hamper our food production, which accelerates the price hike of essential food items. On the other hand, hoarding is another important factor of soaring price level. Some dishonest traders devoid of morality hoard essential goods and create artificial shortage in the market. Then they sell the goods at higher price. Political unrest like strikes is also responsible for a surge in price. Lack of market supervision, black marketing and smuggling also contribute to price hike. The phenomenon has increased the suffering of the common people. The poor and the middle class are mostly affected by it. But, the worst sufferers of it are those who live from hand to mouth. They find it hard to feed their family members. Some of them remain half-fed. As a result, they suffer from malnutrition. Unusual price hike hampers the economic balance of a country. The government should take effective steps to tackle the situation, most notably by increasing food production. Each and every shop must have a price chart fixed by the government. The law enforcing agencies should be deployed in the market places to monitor the market price. Legal actions must be taken against the dishonest businessmen and hoarders. Actually, people of all walks of life should also cooperate with the government.