Overview
- A federal committee led by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar met on June 10 and recommended that the austerity and fuel-conservation measures be extended from their June 13 expiry to June 30.
- Under the revised schedule, shops, markets and malls must close by 9pm while restaurants may operate until 11pm, and standalone grocery and kiryana stores are allowed to stay open until 10pm every day.
- Consular attestation services at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and liaison offices in Quetta, Karachi, Peshawar, Gujrat and Lahore will remain open on Fridays to help citizens access documents despite reduced government working days.
- The committee reviewed exemption requests from multiple ministries and finalised recommendations while directing provincial governments to enforce the updated guidelines and report on implementation.
- Officials say the measures respond to higher international oil prices driven by regional tensions and supply disruptions that have pushed up Pakistan’s import bill and domestic fuel costs, so continued conservation is meant to ease fiscal pressure and protect fuel supplies.