The federal government is set to initiate the implementation of the Ramazan Relief Package valued at Rs. 7.492 billion through the Utility Stores Corporation (USC) starting from Monday, March 4, 2024. With the anticipated commencement of Ramazan on March 11, 2024, the federal cabinet, in the previous month, sanctioned the initiation of the relief package from March 4, 2024, until the concluding day of Ramazan.
Sources indicate that the government aims to provide relief to targeted beneficiaries through the distribution of 19 essential items via the USC. These essential items include Atta, Sugar, Dal Channa, Dal Masoor, White Gram, Rice Basmati, Rice Selia, Broken Rice, Oil, Dal Moong Washed, Baisen (Chakki), Dates, Beverages/Carbonated Drinks, Squashes & Syrups, Black Tea, Milk, and spices. In addition to the provision of essential items, the government plans to allocate Rs. 145 million for an awareness campaign on electronic and print media to promote the Ramadan package. The Ministry of Industries, in communication to the cabinet, highlighted the government’s tradition of providing relief to the public during Ramazan by offering 19 items at subsidized rates through USC outlets since 1991.
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It’s worth noting that the federal government has allocated Rs. 35 billion in the budget for the financial year 2023-24 to subsidize essential items, facilitating the implementation of the Prime Minister’s Relief Package 2023-2024 and the Ramazan Relief Package 2024 through the USC. Due to restrictions imposed by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on un-targeted subsidies, the government has approved the provision of subsidies exclusively to the targeted beneficiaries registered under BISP (Benazir Income Support Program) under PMT-40. The Ministry of Industries and Production has proposed to the cabinet that the USC, currently providing subsidized items to the 26.92 million households registered with BISP under PMT-40, should disburse subsidies to the targeted beneficiaries of BISP registered under PMT-60 instead of PMT-40, thereby serving an additional 12.73 million households.
