Explanation

The government on Monday approved Rs303 billion worth of a supplementary budget to cover the financing cost of a series of populist measures – Rs5 per unit cut in electricity rates, partial payments to the oil industry for a price freeze on petroleum products and debt servicing of Naya Pakistan Certificates. The decisions were taken at a meeting of the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet which also approved Rs8.28bn subsidy for 19 kitchen items for Ramazan Relief Package and Rs3bn for intending overseas Pakistanis to benefit from the flagship Kamyab Pakistan Programme.