Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi on Sunday unveiled a petrol subsidy package for up to 1.6 million motorcyclists of the province, asserting the initiative will help ease the burden on citizens following the hefty fuel price hike announced by the federal government late on Friday night.
Addressing a press conference alongside Adviser to C.M. for Finance Muzammil Aslam and Special Assistant on Information Shafiullah Jan, Afridi slammed the federal government for the Rs. 55/liter increase to ex-depot rates of petrol and diesel, declaring it a “petrol atom bomb” on the public.
To offset the center’s move, he said, the provincial government would provide a subsidy to the 1.4-1.6 million registered motorcycle users of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. Under the announced relief package, each eligible motorcyclist would receive Rs. 2,200 in two instalments of Rs. 1,100 each. He did not, however, provide a mechanism or timeline for the disbursal.
During his press conference, Afridi said the provincial government would also maintain fares for the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) service at their current levels, adding authorities are also working on a relief package for farmers. He asserted that the province would take further take steps to shield citizens from the impact of rising fuel prices, adding poor households, farmers and transport users were the worst-affected.
The chief minister regretted that Pakistan was going through difficult circumstances due to regional tensions—the Iran war and the Pak-Afghan conflict—and internal economic challenges. The immediate concern however, he said, was the increase in petroleum prices. “When the price used to increase by Rs. 12 during the PTI government, the same parties called it a petrol bomb. Today they have increased it by Rs. 55/liter, which is nothing short of a petrol atom bomb on the public,” he said.
Afridi also announced that the government would soon introduce pink buses in the BRT system for women commuters, adding overall 140 buses would be added to fleet, of which 52 buses were ready. Of these, he said, 10 would be dedicated as pink buses for women.
The chief minister said the provincial government is also accelerating its solarization program to provide 130,000 households with solar systems to reduce their reliance on the national grid.