Public transport fares reduced in Islamabad

ISLAMABAD: Public transport fares in Islamabad have been reduced following the recent reduction in petroleum product prices by the government.

The Islamabad district administration has approved the fare reduction, with a specific focus on journeys exceeding 30 kilometres, for which a reduction of up to Rs10 has been approved. The district administration did not specify if the reduction would be applicable if the distance is less than 30 kilometres.

All assistant commissioners have been directed to monitor vehicle fares starting from Monday (today).

On June 1, the federal government announced a reduction in the price of petrol by Rs4.74 paise per liter, while the price of diesel was reduced by Rs3.86 paise per liter.

Earlier on Wednesday, the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) announced a reduction of Rs15.39 per litre for petrol and Rs7.88 per litre for high-speed diesel (HSD).

However, the finance ministry raised objections, noting that it had recommended a more modest cut of Rs4.74 per litre for petrol and Rs3.86 per litre for HSD. These recommendations were based on discussions with the Ministry of Energy and the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra), as outlined in the formal summary sent to the PMO.

The PMO statement, it turned out, repeated a previous decision from May 15, which had cut petrol and HSD prices by Rs15.39 and Rs7.88 per litre, respectively. The old file was mistakenly presented to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif for approval.

Interestingly, the Prime Minister’s decision was promoted as a “big relief” in a post on the government of Pakistan’s official X account.