Punjab bans purchase of petrol, diesel vehicles in govt departments

Lahore: In a major policy shift aimed at cutting emissions and accelerating the transition to clean transport, the Punjab government has decided to impose a complete ban on the purchase of petrol and diesel vehicles across government departments. Under the new decision, all provincial government departments will be allowed to procure only electric or hybrid vehicles. Vehicles deployed for field duties, however, have been exempted from the restriction. Punjab Chief Secretary Zahid Akhtar Zaman said the move reflects the government’s commitment to environmental protection and the promotion of green energy. He added that a comprehensive Electric Vehicle (EV) Policy for the province is expected to be announced shortly. As part of the same initiative, the approval of No Objection Certificates (NOCs) for new petrol pumps has been made conditional on the installation of electric vehicle charging units. ‘No new petrol pump will be allowed to operate without EV charging facilities,’ the chief secretary said. According
to officials, NOCs have already been issued through the e-Biz Portal for 170 new petrol pumps across 31 cities of Punjab, all of which are required to install EV charging units. These include 29 petrol pumps in Faisalabad, 14 in Lahore, 10 in Bahawalpur, nine each in Khanewal and Bahawalnagar, eight each in Rawalpindi and Jhang, and seven each in Toba Tek Singh, Mianwali, Kasur and Chiniot.