Another POL price hike on cards

ISLAMABAD: The Parliamentary committee formed for making recommendations for slashing prices of petroleum products has been told that another hike in POL prices would be made this week, Geo News reported Wednesday.

A meeting of the committee was held with Riaz Hussain Pirzada in the chair in Islamabad.

Tanvir Hussain, one of the members of the committee, suggested that rate of sales tax be fixed for petroleum products while price diesel be brought down.

He said it is time for the government to slash, even if symbolically, the rates of petroleum products.

Secretary Petroloeum, Ijaz Chaudhry, however said the POL prices would be raised yet again in the next 7 days, citing 121 dollars per barrel rate of the commodity in international market. A rise in local POL prices is inevitable, he added.

Minister for Finance, Abdul Hafeez Sheikh said the rate of inflation had been brought within a single digit and would not want it be spoiled through flawed policies.

He said the government had only succeeded in collecting Rs31 billion as levy against the target of Rs75 billion while Rs45 billion were provided as subsidy to the people.