Pakistan’s petrol pump owners and dealers have called off a planned nationwide strike after the federal government assured them that their long-standing financial grievances would be addressed within two weeks.
Islamabad, Pakistan – Web Desk: The Pakistan Petroleum Dealers Association announced in a statement that the strike, which had been scheduled for Wednesday, was being postponed following government assurances to increase the margin paid to fuel dealers.
Nadeem Khan, Information Secretary of the Petrol Pumps Owners Association, confirmed that authorities had promised to meet the association’s core demands. “We have been assured that our commission-related issue will be resolved within two weeks,” Khan said, adding that a daily fuel pricing mechanism would also be run on a two-week trial basis to test its feasibility.
Federal Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik confirmed the assurance, stating that the government would resolve the pump owners’ and dealers’ issues within a fortnight. He added that if the matter remains unresolved after two weeks, authorities would reconvene talks with dealer representatives to find a solution.
The minister rejected allegations of profiteering within the fuel supply chain. “We don’t want anyone to accuse us of playing a role in unjustified profiteering,” Malik said, noting that petrol prices had risen in line with global trends and would similarly come down when international rates ease. He assured that any benefit from falling global oil prices would be transparently passed on to consumers under the same pricing formula.
The strike threat had raised concerns of fuel shortages across Pakistan, with commuters and transporters bracing for potential disruption. The resolution comes as a relief to millions of daily fuel consumers nationwide.
