ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Thursday has hiked the petrol price by Rs 24 per litre in a single day. Now, one litre of petrol in Pakistan costs Rs 233.89 from Rs 209.86.
Addressing a press conference in Islamabad, the Finance Minister of Pakistan Miftah Ismail said that the new prices have come into effect from midnight on June 15.
"The government is not in a position to bear subsidies on petroleum products anymore," said Miftah Ismail and announced an increase in the prices of petrol by Rs 24.03, taking it to the record high of Rs 233.89 per litre.
Similarly, Pakistan on June 15 announced Rs 16.3 hike on diesel. Now, diesel prices stood at Rs 263.31 from Rs 204.15. This is the third such increase in the last 20 days.
The price of kerosene was hiked by Rs 29.49 to Rs 211.43. Earlier the prices stood at Rs 181.94.
Ismail said that the government has no option but to pass on the impact of international prices to the people.
"Our country is still suffering a loss of Rs 24.03 in petrol, Rs 59.16 in diesel, Rs 29.49 in kerosene and Rs 29.16 in light diesel oil, on every litre," the Finance Minister said. He added that the government is spending Rs 120 billion on petrol subsidies.
"I have been watching the condition of the country for 30 years, but I have never seen such a situation in terms of inflation," Ismail said.
Previous government to be blamed:
Minister Ismail criticised the policies of the previous government and claimed that they "deteriorated the country's economy". He said that former Prime Minister Imran Khan had deliberately reduced the prices of petrol by giving subsidies and the incumbent government was bearing the brunt of those decisions.
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He said that in May, this loss had gone past Rs 120 billion — three times greater than running the expenses of the civil government, which amounts to Rs 40 million.
The Government of Pakistan has increased the price of petrol by more than Rs 84 per litre in the past 20 days. Explaining the reasons for another hike in the prices of petroleum products, the minister said that the international price of petrol was USD 120 per litre.
Alternative measures to be taken:
In a move to curb the rising prices of food items, Pakistan has requested its citizens to minimise the usage of tea. The Minister of Planning and Development of Pakistan Ahsan Iqbal has asked the people to drink less tea. "Let us tell you that the prices of pulses, sugar, vegetables and fruits are touching the sky in Pakistan. Due to this, the condition of the common people is getting worse," he said.
According to Iqbal, Pakistan has to import tea from outside and if people reduce the consumption of tea, then it will help in reducing the import expenditure of the government. "Right now we import tea from outside by taking loans. Due to reduction in tea consumption, our import expenditure will come down, which will reduce the pressure on the economic structure," he said.