As a part of its austerity scheme, the Federal government has imposed a 16-month ban on the purchase of new vehicles. The ban is effective immediately.
According to a media report, the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) has issued a circular, informing all ministries and divisions of the ban until June 2024.
However, the Foreign Ministry and diplomatic missions are exempt from this measure. This announcement is only confined to the federal government.
In January, the Punjab Finance Department reportedly imposed an informal ban on the purchase of new vehicles for government departments as a part of an austerity drive.
The provincial Finance department has also returned the summaries for the procurement of new vehicles and has directed all departments not to send new vehicle summaries.
One of the likely reasons for the ban is the recent price hikes and a staggering dollar rate depreciation.
Recently, Luck Motor Corporation (Kia and Peugeot) and Hyundai Nishat Motors Private Limited (HNMPL) increased the prices of their cars. With the dollar rate still playing jump rope, other car companies are likely to follow suit.