A Day in the Life of Struggling Fruit Vendor

Fakhar-e-Alam

Peshawar: On a sunny morning, Zakir Khan, an impoverished fruit seller, begins his rickshaw journey from his mud house on the outskirts of the provincial metropolitan area to Peshawar’s fruit market.

His hope is to purchase apples, guavas, bananas, and other fruits at reasonable rates to support his eight-member family.

Accompanied by his son, Asadullah Khan, the 65-year-old vendor, dressed in traditional attire—a woollen chadar and a Chitrali cap—starts his day with Fajr prayers.

After breakfast, they hurry to the Chamkani fruit market in Peshawar, hoping to secure fresh fruits through an open auction and make a profitable sale in the local market.

After purchasing the fruits, Zakir unloads his rickshaw, now packed with produce, at his handcart in the Pabbi fruit market in Nowshera, after covering a 15-kilometre distance from Peshawar. He works tirelessly until nightfall. 

“I’ve been in this challenging fruit-selling business since childhood, and recently my two sons, Arifullah Khan and Asadullah Khan, have started helping me sell all the stock before the day ends,” Zakir explains.

“It’s a tough trade, and sometimes I suffer losses when the fruits aren’t sold in time,” he adds. Due to skyrocketing fruit prices, many customers inquire about prices and leave without buying anything.

“Last year, citrus from Khanpur Tehsil in Haripur and Manki Sharif in Nowshera was available at Rs 180 per dozen, but now it’s Rs 250 per dozen as the new year starts. Apples, which were Rs 200 per kg last year, are now selling for Rs 250 per kg,” Zakir laments, making it increasingly difficult to sustain this labor-intensive business due to consumer resistance and rising poverty.

“I came to buy fruits for my granddaughter’s birthday party, but the prices were sky-high this morning. I’ll come back at night, hoping for a reduction in the price of apples, guavas, and bananas,” said Riazul Haq, a retired teacher, while speaking at the Pabbi fruit market.

Complaining about the soaring prices of fruits and vegetables, Riazul criticizes the district administration for failing to regularly check market prices and take action against price gougers and hoarders.

“Poverty is the mother of all social ills, including illiteracy, corruption, street crime, drug addiction, and unemployment. It creates socio-economic imbalances in society,” said Professor Dr Muhammad Naeem, former chairman of the Economics Department at the University of Peshawar.

He emphasized that thousands of youth are graduating from universities each year but remain unemployed due to the outdated education system and lack of coordination between government departments, educational institutions, and industries. This gap contributes to Pakistan’s rising poverty rate.

Quoting a World Bank report, Dr Naeem noted that the poverty rate in Pakistan had risen from 34.21 percent in 2022 to 39.41 percent in 2023, pushing 12.5 million people below the poverty line.

He explained that the Pakistani labor market has not yet fully recovered from the devastating 2022 floods, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the ongoing economic turmoil. These challenges present a daunting task for the future government.

“The 2022 floods severely damaged agriculture, tourism, and livestock sectors, affecting over 33 million people nationwide, including Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. An additional nine million people are at risk of falling into poverty,” Dr Naeem said.

He stressed the need for strict financial and fiscal reforms, including reducing government spending, reforming the tax system to shift from indirect to direct taxes, overhauling the pension system, and increasing support for the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) to address poverty and unemployment.

Javeera, a spokesperson for BISP Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, shared that the organisation provides financial assistance to nearly 10 million deserving families through the Benazir Kafalat Program.

She added that children from these families are receiving education through the Taleemi Wazifa initiative, while pregnant and lactating mothers, along with infants, are supported to combat stunting and malnutrition.

Javera also outlined the launch of a new poverty graduation programme aimed at fostering self-reliance among impoverished families. The programme focuses on technical education for their children, initiatives for orphans and widows, and the establishment of an endowment fund for the poorest communities.

She added that Rs 72 billion in quarterly installments, amounting to Rs 9,000 per family for April–June 2023, had been disbursed to eight million deserving beneficiaries by July 21, 2023.

Khushal Khattak, Programme Manager of the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Technical Education and Vocational Training Authority (KP-TEVTA), highlighted a new agreement with five paramedical institutions to enhance the socioeconomic status and skill sets of youth in the merged tribal districts.

Under the agreement, 360 students from these districts will receive two years of professional education in nine paramedical technologies, equipping them for dignified employment in the health sector.

He also noted that soft loans ranging from Rs 500,000 to Rs 5 million are being provided to young people through the Kamyab Jawan Programme. Additionally, Rs 1 billion has been allocated for microloans through the Bank of Khyber for tribal youth.

The “Skills for All” initiative was launched to promote technical education and vocational training, offering field internships with monthly stipends of Rs 10,000 to Rs 15,000 to select youth based on merit.

Over 76 percent of KP TEVTA diploma holders have secured employment, particularly in the health sector.

To further alleviate poverty, the KP government has introduced the Khushal Pakhtunkhwa Programme, aimed at generating job opportunities for youth and aligning the poverty alleviation programme with public expectations.

According to Feroz Jamal Kakakhel, KP’s Information and Tourism Caretaker Minister, half a million youth will be sent abroad for employment, while IT courses aligned with international market demands will also be emphasized.

In addition, Rs 218.7 million has been approved for a de-worming initiative targeting school-age children from underprivileged families. Scholarship and ETEA merit stipend programmes have been launched to improve educational opportunities for children from low-income households in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.

The feature report was released by APP.