Sri Lanka down to last day of petrol

Published May 17, 2022
A driver of an autorickshaw sleeps inside his rickshaw while waiting in a line to buy petrol at a fuel station, amid the country's economic crisis in Colombo, Sri Lanka on May 16, 2022. — Reuters
A driver of an autorickshaw sleeps inside his rickshaw while waiting in a line to buy petrol at a fuel station, amid the country's economic crisis in Colombo, Sri Lanka on May 16, 2022. — Reuters

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka’s new prime minister said on Monday the crisis-hit nation was down to its last day of petrol, as the country’s power minister told citizens not to join the lengthy fuel queues that have galvanised weeks of anti-government protests.

Ranil Wickremesinghe, appointed prime minister on Thursday, said in an address to the nation the country urgently needed $75 million in foreign exchange to pay for essential imports.

“At the moment, we only have petrol stocks for a single day. The next couple of months will be the most difficult ones of our lives,” he said.

“We must prepare ourselves to make some sacrifices and face the challenges of this period.” Two shipments of petrol and two of diesel using an Indian credit line could provide relief in the next few days, he added, but the country is also facing a shortage of 14 essential medicines.

The crisis led to widespread protests against President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his family, culminating in the resignation of his elder brother Mahinda as prime minister last week after fighting between government supporters and protesters killed 9 people and wounded 300.

The president replaced him with Wickremesinghe, an opposition parliamentarian who has held the post five times previously, in a desperate bid to placate protesters.

But the protesters have said they will keep up their campaign as long as Gotabaya Rajapaksa remains president.

Published in Dawn, May 17th, 2022

Opinion

Editorial

IMF scrutiny
11 Feb, 2025

IMF scrutiny

THE technical IMF mission, which is taking stock of Pakistan’s economic governance structure and its vulnerability...
Shadow voices
11 Feb, 2025

Shadow voices

OVER the weekend, another ‘open letter’ addressed to the army chief and attributed to former prime minister ...
Paradise at a premium
11 Feb, 2025

Paradise at a premium

PAKISTAN’S recent triumph at the New York Travel and Adventure Show 2025, winning the Best Partner Pavilion Award,...
A positive note
Updated 10 Feb, 2025

A positive note

With govt unable to press growth accelerator without upending fragile recovery, sufferings of low-middle-income households are unlikely to disappear soon.
Justice for all
10 Feb, 2025

Justice for all

ALONG with his domestic agenda, Donald Trump is busy ripping to shreds the post-World War II ‘rules-based...
Held back
10 Feb, 2025

Held back

IT is a crying shame how women are conspicuously absent from Pakistan’s civil services. Despite comprising half ...