31,000 consumers denied petrol subsidy

The Express Tribune reported that 31,000 petrol subsidy applicants were denied the benefit, as officials reviewed problems with the scheme for motorcycle, rickshaw and small-car owners. At a high-level meeting, officials said 10,344 tokens had expired, while a survey reached around 31,000 people whose tokens were no longer valid. About 11,000 respondents said they lacked time to redeem them.

Officials also cited refusals at stations and technical faults, and the IT ministry was asked to contact around 13,000 people who reported either issue. The 9771 helpline received 3,000 calls, with about 400 resolved at the first level. After four million redemptions at roughly 8,000 stations, administrations were told to audit stations recording fewer than 50 redemptions and address service problems.