LAHORE    -   Chief Secretary Punjab Abdullah Khan Sumbal on Thursday directed all the deputy commissioners to en­sure availability of commodities at fixed rates, saying that ranking for the districts would be done on the basis of their performance in the price control measures.He gave this instruction while presiding over a video link meeting of deputy commissioners to review the pric­es and availability of commodities, at the Civil Secretariat. The meeting decided to fully activate the District Consumer Protection Councils (DCPC) in the dis­tricts and intensify the crackdown on wheat and flour smuggling. Speaking on the occa­sion, Chief Secretary Abdullah Khan Sum­bal said that the avail­ability of food items at fixed prices was the primary responsibility of the administrative officers, adding that they should perform their duties diligently to provide relief to peo­ple from price-hike. He directed the Industries Department to per­suade the Pakistan Va­naspati Manufacturing Association (PVMA) to bring down the prices of ghee. He asked the deputy commissioners to hold regular meet­ings of the District Price Control Com­mittees and continue monitoring of the auc­tions in the markets to stabilize the prices of vegetables.