Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday presided over a high-level meeting on petroleum products, directing provincial governments to take strict legal action against those hoarding the commodities.

According to a handout by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), the Ministry of Petroleum gave a detailed briefing about stocks of petroleum products in the country, in the context of the changing situation in the region.

According to the briefing, sufficient reserves of petroleum products are available in the country to meet national needs, the statement said.

It added that PM Shehbaz directed provincial governments to take strict legal action against those hoarding petroleum products. He said that any petrol pump involved in the illegal practice of creating an artificial shortage should be immediately closed, its licence cancelled, and legal action taken against it, it said.

The premier also instructed the petroleum minister to visit the provinces and, in coordination with the provincial governments, prepare a strategy and plan for conserving petroleum products and ensuring their uninterrupted supply to the public.

He further directed that a dashboard be created to monitor the movement of petroleum products, through which data can be shared with the provinces in real time and the transportation of petroleum products can be monitored, the statement said.

The meeting was attended by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar; federal ministers Jam Kamal Khan, Ahsan Khan Cheema, Muhammad Aurangzeb, Attaullah Tarar, Ali Pervaiz Malik, Awais Leghari; State Bank Governor Jameel Ahmad; and the chief secretaries of Sindh, Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan, Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan.

The meeting comes as s the United States and Israel’s war with Iran continues for a sixth day, disrupting supply chains as ships’ passage through the Strait of Hormuz remains paralysed.

According to Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, there was “no fuel shortage in the country, but things could become serious if the war drags on”.

Pakistan has already formally requested Saudi Arabia to provide an alternative oil supply route through thro­ugh the alternative Red Sea route to maintain its fuel supply chain.

A day earlier, the government also decided in principle to start weekly petroleum pricing from March 8 to pass on additional costs such as heightened insurance, freight and war premiums to consumers, and revive Covid-19-era measures across the country (except health-related restrictions) such distance learning, work-from-home and car-pooling to minimise foreign exchange and financial losses.

The national action plan to cope with the emerging crisis was finalised in consultation with provincial and regional governments at a meeting of the cabinet committee, constituted by the prime minister, to monitor petrol prices.

The action plan was to be presented to the prime minister on Friday and, subject to his clearance and further fine-tuning, to be taken up at a meeting of the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the cabinet for formal approval and implementation.