{
  "id": 8597142,
  "title": "Fuel relief scheme revised; SMS charges scrapped",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/20/fuel-relief-scheme-revised-sms-charges-scrapped",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-20T03:16:22.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Dawn",
    "slug": "dawn",
    "url": "https://www.dawn.com/news/2031242/fuel-relief-scheme-revised-sms-charges-scrapped"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The Pakistani government has made significant revisions to the Prime Minister’s Fuel Relief Scheme, scrapping SMS charges and allowing motorcycle, rickshaw, and Qingqi users to obtain four Rs500 relief tokens per month. Addressing a media briefing, Minister for IT and Telecommunication Shaza Fatima Khawaja clarified that the Rs500 per-token limit for two- and three-wheelers has been abolished. For instance, if two litres of petrol cost Rs780, the beneficiary would only need to pay Rs280 after applying the Rs500 relief token. SMS charges have been abolished across the board, making them free for all users, regardless of their vehicle type. As of Saturday, over 1.75 million registrations had been completed under the scheme, with around 1.5 million tokens generated. The National Steering Committee on Fuel Subsidy, headed by Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar, approved the redemption of fuel tokens through SMS for stations in areas without internet connectivity. They requested Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Gilgit-Baltistan, and the provinces to provide lists of such stations to expedite their inclusion in the scheme. Registration continues nationwide via SMS to 9771, with the meeting attended by key ministers and officials from various departments.",
  "summary": "ISLAMABAD: The government on Saturday announced major changes to the Prime Minister’s Fuel Relief Scheme , including abolition of SMS charges, to facilitate beneficiaries, particularly motorcycle, rickshaw and Qingqi users. Addressing a media briefing, Minister for IT and Telecommunication Shaza Fatima Khawaja said the Rs500 per-token limit for two- and three-wheelers had been abolished. Also,…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 3,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Business Recorder",
        "title": "Fuel subsidy scheme extended to internet-blind areas via SMS redemption",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/19/fuel-subsidy-scheme-extended-to-internet-blind-areas-via-sms",
        "published": "2026-09-19T15:03:45.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Dawn - Pakistan",
        "title": "Fuel relief scheme revision: 5-litre limit per token abolished, SMS charges scrapped",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/20/fuel-relief-scheme-revision-5-litre-limit-per-token-abolished-sms",
        "published": "2026-09-20T03:17:59.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}