GUJRANWALA, July 31: The business community and citizens have strongly protested against the excise and taxation department for imposing heavy property tax on their houses and shops and demanded its revision.

At a meeting held here on Saturday presided over by Markazi Anjuman Tajran president Dr Mahmood Ahmad, the participants said the department had placed their property in category B, like posh areas of Lahore Cantonment, Gulberg, Garden Town, Shadman and Liberty.

They were of the view that people had been deprived of better civic facilities by the concerned tehsil councils in Gujranwala.

Later, they called upon provincial excise minister Dr Muhammad Shafiq at his office in Lahore on Saturday where excise director Sikandar Hayat was also present.

They told the minister that the tax was unjustified as their property did not fall under category A and B. They demanded that their property should be declared under category C and the tax be imposed accordingly.

The provincial minister asked the director to resolve their problems at the earliest.

CRACKDOWN: The district administration has decided to launch a crackdown on shopkeepers on charges of violating the government's price list.

The decision was taken at a meeting of the district price control committee held here on Saturday with district coordination officer Fazeel Asghar in the chair.

Executive district officer (revenue) Tahir Khurshed, district officer Syed Najam Ahmad Shah and other senior officers and members of the price control committee were also present. The meeting fixed the retail price of 20 kilogram of flour bag at Rs230.

The meeting asked the shopkeepers to provide the commodities like mutton, beef, chicken, milk, and cereals at the government's fixed prices and warned that they would be arrested in case of violation of the price list.