As fuel prices remain painfully high, the consequences are no longer limited to household budgets. They have reached our classrooms, our campuses and the dreams of an entire generation. The surge in fuel prices has driven up transportation costs and the prices of essential goods, squeezing low- and middle-income families. A student commuting 30 kilometres by motorcycle now spends over Rs6,000 per month on fuel alone – nearly 9 per cent of a median household’s income. Several students have dropped classes this semester and schools were shut for two weeks last month, disrupting the academic progress of millions. For struggling families, education has become the first sacrifice.
Article 25-A of the Constitution of Pakistan guarantees every child between the ages of five and sixteen the right to free and compulsory education. Rising fuel costs are quietly dismantling this constitutional promise, pushing students out of institutions and widening the inequality between those who can afford to learn and those who cannot. It is respectfully requested that the concerned authorities take immediate action, including reducing taxes on petroleum products, introducing subsidised student transport passes, mandating hybrid learning options and investing in public transportation infrastructure. Education budgets must also be protected from the operational costs that fuel inflation has imposed on public institutions.
Muhammad Sultan Abbasi
Karachi
