ISLAMABAD (Kashmir English): The federal government on Monday abolished fuel subsidies for motorcyclists, public transport, and farmers, days after the petroleum prices were reduced in the country.
The decision was taken during the 7th meeting of the National Steering Committee on Fuel Subsidy, chaired by Deputy Prime Minister & Foreign Minister Senator Ishaq Dar.
The Committee reviewed the rollout of fuel subsidy for motorcyclists, small farmers, public transport & goods transport in all provinces, Gilgit Baltistan, and Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK).
According to the statement, the committee noted that global fuel prices have declined sharply, the benefit of which has already been passed on to the consumers, and “agreed to discontinue the subsidy with the approval of the Prime Minister”.
Ishaq Dar appreciated the work of the committee, marked by sustained interprovincial coordination, and directed to document lessons learnt from this exercise, address gaps in data and delivery to strengthen future initiatives with a view to improving public service delivery.
“The meeting was attended by SAPM Tariq Bajwa, federal secretaries of Petroleum and IT, Governor SBP, and senior representatives from all provinces, GB & AJK,” the statement added.
As per details, the subsidy was introduced after fuel prices surged following the war launched by the US and Israel against Iran in February this year, which resulted in the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
Under the scheme, motorcycle, rickshaw, and 800cc vehicle owners received subsidies ranging from Rs50 to Rs100 per litre.
Public and goods transport operators were provided monthly support of between Rs70,000 and Rs100,000 to help keep fares and transportation costs low, while small farmers received a diesel subsidy of Rs100 per litre.
Last week, the government massively decreased the prices of petrol and diesel following a sharp decline in international crude oil prices.
According to the notification issued by the Petroleum Division, the petrol price has been reduced by Rs74.28 per litre and the high-speed diesel (HSD) price by Rs67.31 per litre, bringing the new rates to Rs299.50 and Rs311.47 per litre, respectively.
