ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has directed authorities to cancel the licences of petrol pumps that refuse to facilitate registered beneficiaries of the government’s Fuel Relief Programme, warning of strict action against outlets obstructing the delivery of subsidised fuel.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!The directive was issued during a meeting chaired by the prime minister to review the programme’s implementation, registration figures, subsidy disbursements and measures to ensure transparency and facilitate eligible consumers.
Officials informed the meeting that more than 15.5 million citizens had registered under the scheme, while Rs28.6 billion had been disbursed in subsidies as of November 4.
According to the briefing, a total of 15,519,282 people had registered, including approximately 15.06 million motorcycle owners and 449,000 owners of vehicles with engine capacities of up to 800cc.
The programme had generated 63.15 million fuel subsidy tokens, of which approximately 59.45 million had been redeemed by beneficiaries.
Expressing satisfaction over the programme’s progress and transparency, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said simplified registration and subsidy redemption procedures had encouraged greater participation and helped more deserving citizens access the relief.
He emphasised that petrol pumps must ensure smooth facilitation of registered beneficiaries, warning that outlets failing to comply with the programme’s requirements would face licence cancellation.
The prime minister described the technology-based subsidy mechanism as a potential model for future public welfare initiatives, stressing that transparent and accessible systems were essential to ensuring relief reached its intended recipients.
He also appreciated Federal Minister for Information Technology and Telecommunication Shaza Fatima, Federal Secretary for IT and Telecommunication Zarar Hashim Khan and their teams for developing the monitoring mechanism and digital dashboard to oversee the programme.
The meeting was further informed that separate call centres had been established for consumers and petrol pump operators to provide guidance, share information and address complaints related to the scheme.
Sharif directed the relevant authorities to strengthen monitoring and ensure effective implementation so that eligible citizens could receive the subsidy without unnecessary delays or difficulties.
The meeting was attended by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar, Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik, Minister for Economic Affairs Ahad Cheema, Minister for Climate Change Musadik Malik, State Minister for Finance Bilal Kiani, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister Tariq Bajwa, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Energy Lt Gen Zafar Iqbal (retd), and senior government officials.
Story by Zulfiqar Ahmad
