ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s information minister Chaudhry Fawad Hussain announced on Thursday the country’s petrol retailers had agreed to call off a strike after reaching an agreement with the government over an increased profit margin.
Earlier in the day, the country’s petroleum division had urged these retailers to end their indefinite strike which was causing public inconvenience while pointing out it had already forwarded a summary regarding the increase in their margin to the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC).
The Pakistan Petroleum Dealers Association went on a strike after failing to secure a deal with the government to increase their margin to at least six percent per liter.
The strike call was followed by long traffic queues at petrol stations across the country.
“The Petroleum Dealers Association has ended its strike,” Hussain announced in a Twitter post while calling it “good news.”
Quoting the association’s spokesperson Jahanzaib Malik, a local newspaper, Dawn, said petroleum dealers had agreed to a 4.4 percent increase in their profit.
“Malik said that petrol dealers were charging Rs3.91 per liter and would now charge Rs4.90,” the newspaper reported. “He said that the price of petrol would be increased after the government announced the rates for next month.”
Prior to reaching the agreement, Pakistani officials asked these dealers to call off their strike and follow the procedure to secure an increase in the profit margin.
“The association of petrol dealers should wait for the ECC meeting as per the rules,” the petroleum division at the energy ministry told them. “The association should exhibit responsibility in the larger interest of the country.”
However, the petroleum dealers said in a statement on Wednesday they were unable to run their business at the current margin in the face of rising inflation in the country.
They also maintained the government promised to increase their profit earlier this month but reneged on its commitment.
“We feel for the public,” the statement said, “but we are left with no option. We cannot run petrol pumps anymore at a loss.”
Following the strike call, the government announced that all companies operating petrol pumps would remain functional and cater to the public demand.
However, nearly all privately owned petrol stations in the country halted their operations.
The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) spokesperson, Imran Ghaznavi, said officials were in touch with the oil marketing companies to ensure uninterrupted supply of petroleum products.
“OGRA teams are in touch with stakeholders and engaged in smooth supplies,” he said.
Pakistan’s finance chief Shaukat Tarin announced recently the government would increase petroleum levy by Rs4 per liter to help meet its revenue target under an agreement with the International Monetary Fund.
He said the government would add this amount to petrol prices every month as part of the levy until it touches 30 rupees per liter.
Pakistani petroleum dealers end strike after proposed increase in profit margins
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Pakistani petroleum dealers end strike after proposed increase in profit margins
- Petroleum dealers went on a strike after failing to secure a deal with the government to increase their margin to at least 6 percent per liter
- Strike call was followed by long traffic queues at petrol stations across the country
UNGA adopts Pakistan-sponsored resolution focusing world attention on Palestine, Kashmir
- The resolution calls on countries to immediately cease foreign military intervention in and occupation of foreign countries and territories
- Islamabad says the resolution reinforces international attention to the legitimate causes and aspirations of Palestinian, Kashmiri peoples
ISLAMABAD: The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) has adopted a Pakistan-sponsored resolution on the peoples’ right to self-determination, Pakistan’s UN mission said on Friday, saying it reinforces the world attention to the Palestine and Kashmir issues.
The text, which was adopted by consensus, was recommended last month by the 193-member General Assembly’s Third Committee, which deals with social, humanitarian and cultural issues, according to Pakistani state media.
Co-sponsored by 65 countries, it called on countries to immediately cease foreign military intervention in and occupation of foreign countries and territories as well as acts of “repression, discrimination, and maltreatment.”
The resolution also declared the General Assembly’s firm opposition to acts of foreign military intervention, aggression and occupation, which have resulted in suppression of peoples’ right to self-determination in parts of the world.
“The consensual adoption of the resolution manifests broad international support for the inalienable right of the peoples facing colonialism, alien domination and foreign occupation,” Pakistan’s UN mission said on X.
“For the people of Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) and Palestine, the resolution reinforces international attention to their just and legitimate cause and their aspirations for freedom and dignity in accordance with UN Security Council resolutions.”
Pakistan, which does not recognize Israel, supports an independent Palestinian state based on “internationally agreed parameters” and pre-1967 borders, calling for an end to Israeli occupation of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem.
Kashmir, on the other hand, has been divided between Pakistan and India since their independence from British rule in 1947. Both countries claim the Himalayan territory in its entirety but rule it in part and have fought multiple wars over it.
Islamabad has repeatedly urged New Delhi to hold a plebiscite in the disputed territory in line with the United Nations Security Council resolutions.
Ambassador Usman Jadoon, Pakistan’s deputy permanent representative to the UN, this week said the realization of self-determination is not merely a historical aspiration, but an enduring obligation.
“Recent developments in the Middle East demonstrate that lasting peace cannot be achieved through the continued denial and suppression of the legitimate right to self-determination of the Palestinian people,” he said on Thursday.
“Similarly, the UN Security Council has, through several resolutions, recognized the legitimate right of self-determination of the people of Jammu and Kashmir. A just resolution of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute remains central to the establishment of durable peace in South Asia.”
