Karachi, November 05, 2021 (PPI-OT):Chairman of National Business Group Pakistan, President Pakistan Businessmen and Intellectuals Forum, and All Karachi Industrial Alliance, and former provincial minister Mian Zahid Hussain on Friday said according to the announcement of Prime Minister Imran Khan, prices of petroleum products have been increased which will lead to more poverty, unemployment and anxiety among the masses.

The decision will increase the cost of doing business and eliminate the effects of the recently announced relief package before its implementation, he said. Mian Zahid Hussain said that the price of petrol has been increased by eight rupees three paisa to Rs145.82 which has reached the highest level in the history of the country. The price of diesel has also been increased by Rs8.14 which will lead to a new wave of inflation.

Talking to the business community, the veteran business leader said that petroleum prices have been revised a day after the relief package was announced, taking people by shock. The price of petrol has gone up by more than Rs35 during the current financial year and this trend is continuing which is affecting the people and the economy.

He said that the relief package was inadequate in the current situation and it would also increase the budget deficit which is already skyrocketing. Instead of announcing new packages, serious efforts can be made to curb inflation by promoting industry and trade which will boost public income. The Prime Minister has announced that energy prices will have to be raised to overcome the fiscal deficit, which means that after petroleum products, electricity and gas prices will also go up soon.

Poor will become even poorer before they can get monthly assistance of Rs150 which is insufficient. Mian Zahid Hussain said that inflation has widened the urban-rural divide while doubling the food expenses of the poor and middle-income groups. He said that the majority of the population is forced to spend a large portion of their income on food, and further increases in energy prices will exacerbate hunger, poverty and malnutrition.

For the last three years, the government has been blaming bad economic conditions on the previous governments and pandemic, which is not acceptable to the people. Now the top officials have started comparing the prices of commodities, food and fuel in Pakistan with the prices of other countries which is difficult to believe because per capita income of these countries, purchasing power of the people, the value of the currency, the GDP and the state’s support for the people are not mentioned in their statements.

People are not satisfied with such comparisons because bad governance is also in front of them which has doubled the inflation. He said that public transport and delivery of essentials will remain costly in Pakistan as long as the policy of keeping petrol cheaper than diesel is practised.

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