Relief: Transport fares cut

Hassaan says prices of essentials set to decrease.

LAHORE: The Lahore Transport Company decreased intra-city urban public transport fares on petrol-run wagons and minibuses by 9.24 per cent and intra-city non-ac diesel bus fares by 6.68 percent on Sunday.

The decision to revise fares was taken in the wake of the recent decline in the prices of petroleum products nationwide.  Chairman Khawaja Ahmad Hassaan said the reduction in petroleum prices would have a significant impact on prices of daily essentials in addition to public transport fares. He said the government would quickly implement the revised fare structure to provide relief to the people.

Bilal Yasin

Cabinet Price Control Committee Chairman Bilal Yasin said that government had formulated a coordinated strategy to ensuring the effective implementation of the decision to revise public transport fares in the wake of the nationwide decrease in price of petroleum products.

He was chairing a meeting of the Cabinet Price Control Committee at the Civil Secretariat. Those present at the meeting were informed that special squads were ensuring that the revised prices of petroleum products were enforced. They were told that revised fare lists were being displayed at bus stops across the Punjab.

DCO Muhammad Usman said 139 fuel stations overcharging consumers had been fined Rs398,000 on Saturday. He said FIRs had been registered against 20 petrol stations, six stations had been sealed and 20 people had been arrested.

The industries secretary said action had been taken against 17,904 profiteers in January. He said they had been fined around Rs20 million and 862 people had been arrested. The secretary said a reduction of 11 per cent in the prices of eatables had been witnessed in comparison to last year. He said prices were expected to drop further in the wake of the decrease in prices of petroleum products.

Yasin expressed satisfaction with the measures taken by the government to reduce public transport fares. He said this would directly benefit the citizens. Yasin said the decision to reduce fares had proved yet again that the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz represented the people and was committed to their welfare.

Industries Minister Chaudhry Muhammad Shafiq, Provincial Assembly Member MPA Muhammad Rafi Rajwara and a number of bureaucrats were also present on the occasion.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 2rd, 2015.