Shehbaz Launches Petrol Relief for Small Vehicles

In response to a sudden spike in global oil prices due to rising tensions in the Middle East, the government has introduced a special relief package for the ordinary people to ease the financial burden of people riding motorcycles and rickshaws or owning small-engine vehicles, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced in Islamabad on September 13, 2026.

What the scheme offers

The scheme, which will be implemented under the initiative, will offer a relief of Rs100 per litre of petrol for eligible users and will be specifically designed to benefit the population that heavily depends on small vehicles and three-wheelers, and motorcycles for their daily transport needs and livelihoods. The measure was aimed to "immediately help the people who are to be hit by the hike in petrol and diesel prices when the prices are going to have a bearing on household budgets," Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said.

Motorcycle users, rickshaw and Qingqi rickshaw operators, and other eligible two and three-wheeler users will get a subsidy of Rs100 per litre for a maximum of 20 litres of petrol for each month, the prime minister said, according to the details. Small cars with engines of up to 800cc will be similarly eligible for the same per- litre reli ef up to 30 litres per month depending on the fuel use of various categories of consumers.

Why the government announced relief

The government has drawn out a timeline to implement the scheme, with the first phase to start from the night of Monday to Tuesday in the Islamabad Capital Territory and the second phase in other parts of the country, including Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan , to start on the night of Wednesday to Thursday. The phased rollout is designed to ease the registration and verification process prior to national rollout of the scheme.

The registration procedure for the relief programme has been started and the citizens will be informed of the detailed procedure through a dedicated public awareness campaign by the government. It is hoped the campaign will give information on eligibility, registration process and how the promised petroleum relief will be made available to beneficiaries.

Rollout and registration

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif stated that the government was well aware about the challenges being faced by the citizens due to the increasing price of petroleum products and announced that the relief package was being rolled out in response to the "unusual situation" caused by developments in the international oil market. He pledged the government would go on to take measures to alleviate the burden of those who are vulnerable during the price spike of fuel.

The announcement coincides with a new bout of uncertainty in international oil markets, as tensions in the Middle East are also driving energy markets volatility due to disruptions in energy and security infrastructure. The government in Pakistan, where the prices of the raw materials like oil can have a direct impact on the transportation cost, the inflation rate and expenditure by households, has been trying to provide targeted assistance to those households that are most affected by the price increase.

Role of provinces and vehicle data

The prime minister also accepted the support being provided to him by the provincial governments in providing information about motorcycles, rickshaws and small vehicles which can be registered under the relief programme . As the scheme progresses to implementation across the country, it is expected that the coordination between the federal and provincial authorities will help facilitate identification and verification of eligible beneficiaries.

The special relief programme is an attempt by the government to offer relief to the less well-off population and to tackle the immediate effects of the rising price of petroleum, especially for those whose livelihoods and daily activities rely on motorcycles, rickshaws, Qingqi rickshaws and small engine vehicles.