West Asian Tension Impact on Pakistan: The ongoing war in the Middle East has created a big crisis for India’s neighbor Pakistan. The situation is such that on one hand the prices of petrol are skyrocketing, while on the other hand the government is not able to understand how to meet this challenge. For this, the Government of Pakistan has also approved salary cut of up to 30 percent in government companies. The Shehbaz Sharif-led Pakistan government on Saturday approved a 5 to 30 percent salary cut for employees of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and autonomous institutions.
Impact of Middle East crisis on Pakistan
This step has been taken as part of the broader austerity campaign. According to a statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office, a high-level meeting was held to review the fluctuations in fuel prices and government savings measures, which was chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
It was decided in the meeting that like government employees, the salaries of employees of state-owned enterprises and autonomous institutions running under the patronage of the government will also be cut by 5 to 30 percent.
The statement said that the savings arising from these measures will be used only to provide relief to the public. The meeting was also informed that the 50 per cent reduction in fuel allocation for government vehicles will be monitored through a third-party audit, while 60 per cent of government vehicles will be taken off the roads in the next two months.
60 percent vehicles will be removed in two months
According to the statement, the government’s decision of complete ban on purchase of new vehicles and ban on other government purchases will also remain in force. Two months’ salary of cabinet members, ministers, advisors and special assistants will also be used as savings for public welfare.
The Prime Minister said that the complete ban imposed on foreign trips of government officials, ministers, ministers of state and special assistants will continue.
After the US-Iran war has entered its third week, its impact on Pakistan has started becoming visible. After the increase in petroleum prices by Rs 55 per liter last Friday, the government had announced several measures to reduce fuel consumption.
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