THESE days we hear a lot about price hike, especially in times when commodities should be sold at affordable rates. A case in point is the holy month of Ramazan when people, instead of buying foodstuff at bearable prices, find it hard to manage their finances.

Things have not always been like that, by the way.

On May 26, 1969 the Karachi Bakers Group announced that from May 27 there would be a reduction in bread prices by three paisa per pound. The secretary of the group explained that the bakers had decided to reduce the prices voluntarily after having a series of talks with officials of the Regional Directorate of Goods.

The same day, another important decision was taken: the coordination committee of the Karachi Municipal Corporation (KMC) and the Karachi Development Authority (KDA) decided that the entirecontrol of Liaquatabad would be handed over to the KMC within 15 days. The meeting was attended by the director-general, financial adviser, secretary and other officials of the KDA and the chairman, chief officer and chief engineer of the KMC. It was also agreed upon that the water supply arrangement for KDA schemes 1 and 7 would be handed over to the corporation within 24 hours. Previously, the KDA was supplying water to the two areas. In respect of Liaquatabad, the KDA served as the agent of the Central Government for collecting instalments for hiring/purchasing quaners built in the locality about 18 years before by the rehabilitation department. The KDA was responsible for issuing leases to the alottees 100.

The KMC hogged the media`s attention for another reason that week. The corporation took control of the overall supervision of Ghalib Library being constructed with the help of a local bank in Nazimabad. At a session of the KMC Library Board,the corporation was allowed to proceed with construction work. The Idara-i-Yadgar-i-Ghalib was to run and manage the library`s affairs but the ownership of the land of the building would vest in the KMC. A press release stated that a formal lease agreement would be entered into between the KMC and the Idara on these lines. The library had proved not a simple project, and although construction on the building had been under way for the last three months, the repon published in this newspaper suggested many of the city fathers had disapproved it as no formal working procedure for it had been finalised.

On the academic front, on May 30, the Pakistan Press Institute came up with the idea of establishing a school of journalism in the city to provide theoretical and practical training in journalism with greater emphasis on the latter. It was decided at the annual meeting of the advisory board of the institute presided over by Jamil Ansari, editor ofDawn. It also approved an institution of scholarships for higher training abroad in photography and journalism. Did it happen? No.

Now to something that`s a bit saddening. Earlier this month (on May 16, 2019) eminent Pakistani artist Jamil Naqsh died in London. Fifty years back, on May 27, 1969 his work was exhibited at the Gallery (run by Bashir Mirza) in Karachi when leading painters joined newcomers for a six-person group show presenting three compositions each. Included in the show were works by Ali Imam, Jamil Naqsh, Ajmal Hussain, Bashir Mirza, Farida Ahmed and Anees Hashimoby.

Critics believed that Ali Imam and Jamil Naqsh came out as the major attraction of the show and Naqsh`s big sensual artwork in grey almost dominated the exhibition. The other two paintings by him were nudes in blue and brown. He had been consistent with that theme as well as with the theme of pigeons but his (recent) work on display was structurally well organised.