Reporting snapshot · 21 March 2026. Petrol and diesel were held for the week, but kerosene was allowed to rise, widening the gap in how the fuel crisis is shared across consumers.
What changed
The federal government raised the price of kerosene oil by Rs70.73 per litre, taking the new rate to Rs428.74 per litre, under a notification issued by the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) on Friday, ProPakistani reported. The revised price took effect immediately, and the government attributed the increase to continuing volatility in global petroleum prices.
The move came even as Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced that petrol and high-speed diesel prices would stay unchanged for another week. The government said it would cover the resulting Rs45 billion cost for the next seven days.
Why kerosene was singled out
The increase extends a pattern set earlier in March, when the government allowed kerosene to rise while freezing the two main transport fuels. On 15 March it raised kerosene by Rs40 a litre to Rs358 and held petrol and high-speed diesel steady. The 21 March notification is the second such increase in a week.
The cost of shielding motorists is being carried through price-differential claims paid to oil marketing companies. The Petroleum Division wrote to OGRA that the government would pay up to Rs176.41 per litre on high-speed diesel and Rs77.98 per litre on petrol from 21 to 27 March, a package worth about Rs48 billion, The News International reported. The payments are to be made by the Finance Division through OGRA.
Pressure on households
Kerosene is used for cooking, lighting and heating, especially in lower-income and off-grid households, so the increase is expected to squeeze budgets that the broader fuel-price freeze does not reach. The government has framed the petrol and diesel freeze as temporary, warning that it cannot absorb global oil prices indefinitely while the Middle East conflict and shipping disruptions continue.
Sources & reporting notes
An original synthesis of contemporaneous Pakistani reporting, not eyewitness reconstruction. Sources were reviewed on 21 March 2026.
- ProPakistani — "Govt Announces Huge Increase in Price of Kerosene Oil"Published 21 March 2026 · Primary report for the Rs70.73 per litre kerosene increase, the new Rs428.74 rate, the OGRA notification and the government's attribution to global price volatility.
- The News International — "Centre to pay around Rs48bn to OMCs as part of fuel price differential"Published 21 March 2026 · Details of the Petroleum Division letter, the per-litre diesel and petrol differentials, the Rs48 billion total and the 21–27 March payment window.
- Geo News — "PM Shehbaz addresses nation on global fuel crisis"Published 20 March 2026 · Background on the prime minister's decision to freeze petrol and diesel and absorb the Rs45 billion cost.
