Motorcyclists will receive a weekly five-litre subsidy token, while car owners will get a 10-litre token every 10 days; old cars and motorcycles are also eligible, and registration need not be in the applicant’s name, Federal Minister Shaza Fatima Khawaja said.
Federal ministers Attaullah Tarar, Shaza Fatima and Ali Pervez Malik held a joint press conference, during which Federal Minister for Information Technology Shaza Fatima gave a detailed briefing on the procedure and features of the Prime Minister’s Fuel Relief Scheme.
Shaza Fatima Khawaja said motorcyclists would receive a five-litre subsidy token weekly and car owners a 10-litre token every 10 days. Old cars and motorcycles would also be eligible for the subsidy, and registration would not necessarily have to be in the applicant’s name.
Motorcycle riders would be able to obtain the petrol subsidy once a week, while car owners could receive it once every 10 days. The token would cover 10 litres for a car and 5 litres for a motorcycle.
15-year-old motorcycles and 20-year-old cars would also be eligible for the petrol subsidy programme.
Meanwhile, the Pakistan Petroleum Dealers Association has expressed serious reservations and concern over the scheme, stating that it is essential to take petroleum dealers across the country into confidence before implementation.
In a press release, the Pakistan Petroleum Dealers Association pointed out administrative flaws in the strategy for implementing the Fuel Relief Scheme. The association said that thousands of petrol pumps across the country face queues of millions of motorcycles every day, making it practically extremely difficult and impossible for pump staff to check the identity documents, registration or invoices of every motorcyclist.
The dealers said that, without a clear and automated digital procedure, checking invoices at pumps could lead to arguments between the public and pump staff, longer queues and serious unpleasantness.
In view of the gravity of the situation, the PPDA has called a high-level emergency meeting of petroleum dealers from across the country this evening. The meeting will discuss in detail the technical aspects, administrative procedure and potential challenges of the Fuel Relief Scheme.
