Shaheer Ahmed
Petrol, Petrol, and Petrol, the word has been ringing in our ears for days. Almost a week ago, the government shocked us with Rs. 30 per liter hike in petrol prices. Seems like the government didn’t get the expected reaction. Therefore, the authorities decided to startle us even more just to test our tolerance. It’s not new but skyrocketing petrol prices in Pakistan are alarming for the country.
New Petrol Prices in Pakistan
Pakistanis nowadays are dealing with all sorts of problems. The inflation, recession, political turmoil, and load-shedding of gas and electricity, looks like the opportunities that should’ve knocked at our doors by now, overlooked us, and knocked at the doors of our neighbors. Otherwise, is it possible for all the calamities to hit the country all at once?
We hardly made peace with the last hikes in petrol commodities, that we were struck with another. And friends that just didn’t stop there. After that, the government raised the prices of cooking oil by Rs 213 per liter. We even decided to cook food in petrol instead of cooking oil. Maybe the government got a wind of our plans and made a scheme to render our plans futile.
Hikes In Petrol Prices – Govt Drops Yet Another Bomb
To boost the economy, stabilize the country, and seek the IMF bailouts the government had to take a very hard decision, which otherwise it wouldn’t have. Miftah Ismail, the finance minister announced that the government has decided to raise the price of petroleum products by Rs. 30 again.
The new prices per liter are:
- Kerosene oil: Rs181.94
- Petrol: Rs209.86
- Light diesel: Rs178.31
- Diesel: Rs204.15
The prices of kerosene oil have not been increased since it doesn’t put the country at loss compared to other commodities. The finance minister also acknowledged that many people would suffer but there is nothing much the government can do.
Regarding the import of petrol from Russia, the finance minister said that the government is willing to import oil from Russia but the country has not yet responded to our offer.
Nevertheless, the good news amid all this is that Chinese banks are going to refinance Pakistan with funds worth $2.3 billion. It will help Pakistan prevent the depletion of foreign exchange reserves.
Moreover, the government has also decided not to raise the price of sugar and wheat. The price of sugar Rs70 per kg and wheat Rs40 per kg is likely to remain the same. Hah! but don’t get too excited, it could backfire.
