SRINAGAR, MAY 12: The authorities in Srinagar Sunday sealed butchery at Nowshera area here after a surprise inspection caught it selling meat at higher-than-approved rate.

The owner of the butchery operating under the business name Manzoor Meat Shop was arrested and an FIR under Section 3/7 of the Essential Commodities Act registered against him in the local police station.

The action is in pursuance to a series of measures the administration has taken against violators over the past few days in response to complaints of overpricing of fresh food items following the closure of the Jammu-Srinagar highway.

The authorities have stepped up the market vigil to check the menace of overpricing of essential commodities in the market.

It is notable that the District Magistrate Dr Shahid Iqbal has directed for daily inspections of all fresh food markets across the district throughout the month of Ramadan. He has called for strict action against all those indulging in overpricing.

The administration has appealed the general public to help in maintaining a check on the black marketing of essential items and report such instances on phone number 9419080036 or to FCS&CA senior officers at 9906464944 (for areas in the North) and 7051736919 (for those in the South of the district).