KP Chief Minister Announces Rs2,200 Subsidy for Motorcyclists Amid Petrol Price Hike

Islamabad: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister **Sohail Afridi** has announced a subsidy for motorcycle riders across the province following the recent increase in petroleum prices.

Addressing a press conference along with Special Assistant for Information **Shafi Jan** and Adviser to the Chief Minister on Finance **Muzammil Aslam**, the chief minister criticized the federal government over the petrol price hike. He said the “fake government has dropped a petrol bomb on the public,” adding that the provincial government rejects the increase and believes the federation should take provinces into confidence on such decisions.

Afridi said the federal government should reduce its own expenditures instead of putting additional financial burden on the public. He added that during the COVID-19 period when the provincial government increased petrol prices, political opponents criticized the move, but the KP government did not engage in politics during national crises.

He further stated that when floods hit Punjab, the KP government supported the province without politicizing the situation. Similarly, no politics was done when Karachi’s Gul Plaza caught fire or when former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s health issues were discussed, but now political opponents are politicizing the health of PTI’s founding leader.

The chief minister announced that the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has decided to provide financial relief to motorcycle users to offset the impact of rising petroleum prices. He said there are currently around 1.4 to 1.6 million registered motorcycles in the province, and each registered motorcycle user will receive **Rs2,200** as a subsidy to help reduce transportation costs.

Afridi also said the KP government stands with its people and has decided not to increase fares of the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) service, with the government itself bearing the additional costs.

He added that the provincial government has imposed a ban on the purchase and sale of new vehicles and also restricted international visits by officials to reduce expenses. Afridi said that even though the government helicopter crashed, the administration has decided not to purchase a new one, while accusing the federal government of buying private jets for itself and imposing a “Rs55 per liter petrol bomb” on the public instead of reducing its own spending.