PAKISTAN’S caretaker Government has announced yet another hike in the prices of petrol and diesel, taking them to a historic high – over Rs 330 per litre – amidst double-digit inflation in the cash-strapped country. The Ministry of Finance on Friday night announced the price hike of petrol by Rs 26.02 and diesel by Rs 17.34 per litre following clearance from caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar. After the hike, petrol and high-speed diesel (HSD) are costing over Rs 330 at the filling stations, “a psychological barrier that has been crossed for the first time in the country’s history,” the ‘Dawn’ newspaper wrote.

 

The fuel price hike comes on the heels of over 27.4 per cent increase in the rate of inflation in August, putting an unbearable burden on the masses, as petrol and HSD are used by all private and public service vehicles. “Owing to the increasing trend of petroleum prices in the international market, the Government has decided to revise the existing consumer prices of petroleum products,” the Ministry said. On September 1, the caretaker Government had jacked up the petrol and diesel prices by over Rs 14. The rise is on top of Rs 32.41 and Rs 38.49 per litre increase in petrol and HSD prices since August 15. The combined increase now works out at Rs 58.43 and Rs 55.83 per litre within one month. In July, the IMF transferred USD 1.2 billion to cash-strapped Pakistan, part of the USD 3 billion bailout programme for nine months to support the Government’s efforts to stabilise the country’s ailing economy.