PESHAWAR: A massive surge in petroleum products’ prices has prompted transporters to announce an unprecedented increase in passenger and goods transportation fares ranging from 20 to 65 per cent respectively.

During a short period of one month the prices of petroleum products and transport charges were increased twice.

Khan Zaman Afridi, provincial president of the Public Transport Owners Association Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, told this correspondent that the continuous and unprecedented rise in fuel prices has severely affected both transporters and commuters alike.

“About a month ago, in the first week of March, when fuel prices were increased, transporters raised fares by 20 per cent. Now, just a month later, in April 2026, the massive hike - Rs137.24 per litre in petrol and Rs184.49 per litre in diesel - is simply unbearable for us,” he said.

Stakeholders term hike in petroleum prices as anti-people

Mr Afridi further stated that on Friday the office-bearers of various transport organisations held a joint meeting in Peshawar.

After extensive deliberations, they approved an increase of up to 25 per cent in inter-district and inter-provincial transport fares. He added that in Punjab, passenger fares have already been increased by as much as 65 per cent.

Meanwhile, Pakistan Goods Transporters Owners Association has also announced a 65 per cent increase in freight charges, similar to the hike implemented in March. Transporters complained that the federal government announced fuel price increases overnight without taking stakeholders into confidence, leading to repeated disputes between transporters and the public.

Mr Afridi noted that the provincial government has yet to issue a revised fare schedule, as fuel price hike is often announced at times when the following day is a public holiday.

Separately, Awami National Party central president Aimal Wali Khan strongly condemned the recent sharp increase in petroleum prices, calling it a “shameful and anti-people” move.

He said the government was using global situation as a pretext to burden the public. While acknowledging that a global oil crisis exists, he argued that the scale and manner of price increase in Pakistan reflects not just incompetence but a deliberate policy.

He said that current prices did not reflect the international market but are instead driven by taxes, levies and government economic policies.

Meanwhile, Sarhad Chamber of Commerce and Industry and All Pakistan Wapda Hydro Electric Workers Union, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, on Friday expressed concern over latest increase in petroleum prices, stating that the move would further dampen economic and industrial activity and fuel inflation across the country.

In their separate statements, the SCCI and Wapda employees urged federal government to withdraw its decision about increase in the fuel prices.

SCCI president Junaid Altaf said the prices of petrol had reached Rs458.40 per litre and high-speed diesel (HSD) Rs520.35 per litre, describing it as the highest in the country’s history. The chamber warned that the increase would have a direct impact on all segments of society.

SCCI president Junaid Altaf, senior vice president Mohammad Nadeem and vice president Sabir Ahmad Bangash, along with members of the executive committee, termed the decision “highly unfair” and urged the government to withdraw the hike in the interest of the national economy.

All Pakistan Wapda Hydro Electric Workers Union Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has expressed grave concern over the sharp increase in petroleum prices, stating that it has pushed essential food items beyond the reach of poor workers and the lower middle class.

In a statement here on Friday the union’s spokesman Gohar Ali Gohar said the rising cost of living had severely affected the purchasing power of the working class, forcing many families to struggle for basic necessities.

Published in Dawn, April 4th, 2026