1981

Critically examine the following passage:
Some societies have experimented with eliminating the middleman. Prices can certainly be controlled better if the government acts as the middleman, because, after all, goods have to be lifted and transported to the other parts of the country. But governments are not usually very efficient or quick in these matters. Nor are they economical — a lot of file-and-paperwork involving a lot of people adds up to a lot of indirect expense. Although in theory it ought to be possible to reduce prices by eliminating the middleman, in practice it seems to be an essential evil.
Business can be left to find its own level in accordance with the so-called ‘laws’ of supply and demand. By and large, Pakistan is what is called a ‘sellers’ market because essential goods are usually in short supply or are inclined to fall below the needs of an overgrowing population. Market manipulation in such a situation is easy and unfortunately fairly common. Goods usually disappear at about the time they are needed most, leading to price spirals and malpractices. Price control under such circumstances becomes a little unrealistic unless a huge department can be set up with vigilance terms and inspectors empowered to raid shops and warehouses. The efforts to control a seller’s market is so great and the costs so high that in fact not a great deal of ôontrol can be exercised. And alternative method is to encourage the growth of buyer’s market in which the customer has a choice between many competing products. Competition automatically-forces good quality and low prices on the goods. This is at present only possible in the high production areas of the world. But competition leads to malpractices of a different kind. Survival for a business often depends upon the destruction of competing business and big companies have a natural advantage over small ones. An obsessive drive to ‘sell’ is generated in such a system. Huge sums are spent on advertising, the costs of which are transferred to the buyer. People are tricked and badgered into buying things they do not really need.

Answer:
The position of middleman is essential for some societies. It is a necessary evil because, without them, market manipulation and the monopolies of big companies would certainly be out of control. Admittedly, the government cannot act as a middleman owing to many restrictions, but it can certainly regulate the activities of middlemen by controlling the pricing of commodities to a limited extent.