Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Friday that he had rejected recommendations for further increasing petrol and high-speed diesel (HSD) prices, adding that, however, he had instructed relevant ministries to devise a mechanism to ensure that the “relief” was restricted to only the deserving and needy.

He said this during an address to the nation, delivered on the eve of Eidul Fitr. The premier began his address by extending Eid greetings to the nation.

He also referred to a global fuel crisis resulting from the US-Israeli war on Iran, which began on February 28. The government announced unprecedented austerity measures last week to cope with the crisis and also hiked petroleum products’ prices earlier this month.

PM Shehbaz said in view of the present situation, the festival demanded humanity, national unity and collective responsibility. “And I believe the joy of Eid in its true sense is sharing it with those in need,” he added.

The premier said the world was facing an “extraordinary challenge” today, adding that the values of selflessness, hard work and compassion were the only means to resolving the crisis.

He said the war going on in the Middle East had severely impacted the global peace and economy, as well as the common man. “The situation has become even more dangerous in the aftermath of attacks on energy installations of brotherly countries,” he added.

“And the risk of this crisis intensifying and prolonging increases with every passing moment.”

PM Shehbaz noted that the price of oil from the Middle East had skyrocketed in the international market. “It was available for $72 per barrel a few weeks ago, but in just three weeks, the price has breached the historic mark of $158 per barrel,” he said.

He warned that if the situation continued to worsen, a further increase in fuel prices would be imminent.

The premier said the crisis was giving rise to an “inflation storm”, adding that he realised that an increase in petrol and HSD prices earlier in March by Rs55 per litre had badly affected a common man’s life.

He lauded the nation for its “patience and courage” during these challenging times, thanking the people for their “cooperation”.

PM Shehbaz said on March 13, oil prices in the international market had significantly increased again. Thereafter, he continued, a recommendation for increasing the price of petrol by Rs50 per litre and that of HSD by Rs74 per litre was made.

“But I rejected this recommendation,” he said, explaining that he realised the burden that the people were bearing following the Rs55 per litre increase.

So, he said, “I decided that the federal government will bear the burden of around Rs24 billion, resulting from the rise in oil prices. For this, we made necessary cuts in our budgets and limited development expenditure”.

He further said another increase had been witnessed in oil prices in the “week starting today”, following which it was again recommended to him to increase the price of petrol by Rs76 per litre and that of diesel by Rs177 per litre.

But, he said, he rejected the recommendations, particularly considering that Eid was so close.

“So, once again, the federal government will bear the additional burden of Rs45bn,” PM Shehbaz said.

The premier said that for the last two weeks, the federal government had spent Rs69bn from its “savings and development budgets” to prevent an increase of Rs127 per litre in the price of petrol and Rs252 per litre in that of HSD.

However, he added, it was not a lasting solution.

He also noted that the measures did not just benefit the deserving and needy, but also those who were well off.

“To stop this unjust practice, I have issued instructions to relevant ministries to form a comprehensive and transparent mechanism to ensure that the relief is limited to the deserving,” he announced.