Punjab bans purchase of petrol, diesel vehicles for official use
Pakistan
Punjab government bans new petrol and diesel vehicles for departments, promoting electric and hybrid options. New petrol pumps must install EV charging units. 170 NOCs issued for 31 cities.
LAHORE (Dunya News) – The Punjab government has announced a ban on the purchase of new petrol and diesel vehicles for government departments in a bid to promote environment friendly transport.
It has been decided that only electric or hybrid vehicles will be allowed for purchase, while vehicles used in field duty will be exempted from the new restriction.
Additionally, the government has imposed a condition for the approval of new petrol pumps. New fuel stations will only receive their No Objection Certificate (NOC) after installing electric vehicle charging units.
This decision ensures that no new petrol pump can operate without providing facilities for electric vehicle charging.
Punjab's Chief Secretary emphasized that promoting "green energy" is a priority for the government in order to protect the environment. A new electric vehicle policy for the province will soon be introduced to further support these efforts.
As part of this initiative, NOCs for 170 new petrol pumps in 31 cities have been issued via the E-Biz portal.
Notable cities such as Faisalabad (29 pumps), Lahore (14 pumps), Bahawalpur (10 pumps), and Khanewal and Bahawalnagar (9 pumps each) will see new petrol stations with mandatory electric charging units.
