PM Shehbaz orders crackdown on petroleum smuggling, hoarding

Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday ordered strict action against the smuggling and illegal hoarding of petroleum products across the country.

The premier said this while presiding over a high-level meeting to review ongoing measures for the petroleum product supply chain, conservation, and austerity in light of the regional situation.

According to the PM Office, the meeting assessed measures to provide relief to low-income groups in the context of the current circumstances. The prime minister directed the relevant ministries to present final proposals in this regard after consultations with the provinces.

“Over the past three weeks, the federal government has taken significant steps to provide relief to the low-income sector, and such measures will continue in the future,” PM Shehbaz stated.

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He added that to prevent oil price hikes, the federal government provided Rs129 billion in relief to the common man through various austerity measures, savings, and cuts to the development budget.

The premier noted that due to the federal government’s timely decisions, an adequate quantity of petroleum products is available to meet national requirements. “Providing relief to the people is our top priority,” he emphasised.

The development comes as Shehbaz, a day ago, directed provincial governments to provide all necessary facilities to motorcycle and rickshaw owners to register their vehicles in their own names, paving the way for a specialised Fuel Support Programme designed to shield low-income commuters from global oil price volatility.

“This initiative would help digitise data of motorcycles and rickshaws across the country and enable their owners to benefit from government relief measures in the future,” PM Shehbaz had said.

He had directed the authorities to approach the chief secretaries of all four provinces, Azad Kashmir, and Gilgit-Baltistan in this regard.

The today’s meeting was briefed on the progress of implementing austerity and conservation measures. It was further noted that the supply, demand, and entire supply chain of petroleum products are being regularly monitored via a digital dashboard.

The meeting was attended by Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue Muhammad Aurangzeb, Federal Minister for Economic Affairs Ahad Cheema, Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar, Minister for Petroleum Ali Pervaiz Malik, Federal Minister for IT and Telecom Shaza Fatima, Minister for Power Division Sardar Awais Leghari, Advisor to PM on Privatisation Muhammad Ali, Minister of State for Finance and Railways Bilal Azhar Kayani, Special Assistant to PM Tariq Bajwa, and other senior government officials.