Rs 5 Daily Hike, 75-Paisa Cut: Kakar Grills Officials Over Fuel Pricing

Business Desk

ISLAMABAD: The Senate Standing Committee on Petroleum has questioned the transparency of the daily petroleum pricing mechanism, with Chairman Senator Manzoor Hussain Kakar challenging the disparity between fuel price increases and reductions and demanding clear answers from government officials.

At a meeting chaired by Kakar, lawmakers scrutinised the pricing mechanism for petroleum products and the government’s fuel subsidy scheme, expressing concern over what they described as an imbalance in the pace of price hikes and cuts.

Kakar questioned why fuel prices could be increased by Rs 5 in a single day while reductions were sometimes restricted to just 75 paisa, calling for greater clarity on how prices were calculated and adjusted.

The Petroleum Division’s special secretary told the committee that explaining the price-setting mechanism fell within the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority’s (OGRA) remit.

An OGRA finance representative informed the meeting that petroleum prices were calculated using a rolling average of Arab Gulf product prices, based on cargoes arriving over a seven-day period. The calculation also took marine losses and other costs into account, while customs duty was added to the cost of imported oil.

Officials said fuel supplies had remained unstable during the war, compelling Pakistan to procure petroleum products from available sources across the region.

The committee was also informed that the prime minister’s fuel subsidy scheme had been launched on September 14. Around 10 million people had registered under the scheme, while Rs9 billion had been released for its implementation.

Dissatisfied with the briefing, Kakar rebuked officials for what he described as their casual attitude towards the parliamentary committee, stressing that it was a body of the Senate, the upper house of Parliament, and deserved due consideration.

Senator Quratul Ain Marri also criticised the officials for submitting only a brief written response, saying the committee was being treated in a manner that forced its members to repeatedly assert their institutional importance. Kakar assured the members that he would personally look into the matter concerning the officials and take whatever action was within his authority.

Turning discussion towards public expenditure, official privileges and the treatment of employees, Senator Sadia Abbasi criticised what she described as excessive use of public resources, questioning the privileges enjoyed by officials at a time when ordinary citizens were struggling to meet household expenses.

Marri sought details of the board’s composition and asked how much had been saved through the removal of employees. Abbasi urged officials to convey the committee’s concerns to the relevant minister, describing the treatment of employees as unjust. She also questioned the contrast between the financial hardships faced by ordinary citizens and the large convoys accompanying ministers.

The senators called for greater accountability, a transparent petroleum pricing mechanism and clear explanations of government decisions affecting public spending and the cost of living.