The federal government has ordered a three-month austerity campaign amid rising global petroleum prices, cutting fuel supply for official vehicles by 50 percent and grounding half of the vehicle fleet with immediate effect.
Under the measures, fuel provision for official vehicles has been reduced by half, though vehicles of the Armed Forces, Civil Armed Forces and law enforcement agencies remain exempt, along with operational vehicles of essential services and the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR).
The Non-ERE Budget for the 2026-27 fiscal year will also see a five percent cut, while the purchase of all new vehicles has been completely banned. A similar ban applies to durable goods, with IT equipment procurement the sole exception.
All official foreign visits and travel have been suspended for three months. Where travel abroad cannot be avoided, ministers, advisors and government officials must fly economy class. Official meetings will be held preferably through video conferencing, and no government dinners will be hosted except those honouring visiting foreign delegations.
Government-funded seminars, training programmes and conferences have also been banned. Where such events cannot be avoided, they must be held in government auditoriums and committee rooms rather than private venues. Marriage-related functions will now be limited to serving a single dish under the same austerity drive.
Provincial and regional governments have been invited to consider adopting similar austerity measures of their own. The government has also decided to accept exemption requests from these restrictions, which will be reviewed case by case, with a committee forwarding its recommendations to the prime minister for final approval.
