The federal government announced new business operating hour restrictions on Wednesday as part of ongoing fuel conservation and austerity measures. The updated schedule requires shops, markets, malls, and retail outlets to close by 9pm, while restaurants, cafes, and eateries can remain open until 11pm. This directive was issued with a call for provincial governments to ensure strict implementation.
The decision emerged from a meeting of the Committee for Monitoring and Implementation of Austerity Measures, chaired by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar on Tuesday. Notably, takeaway and delivery services are exempt from these restrictions, allowing them to continue operating beyond the new closing times.
Marriage halls and event venues will maintain their current closing time of 10pm, with no changes introduced. Similarly, essential services including pharmacies, hospitals, fuel stations, and IT and telecom providers are excluded from the new timing regulations.
The committee emphasized the need for provincial authorities to coordinate with federal officials to enforce these updated guidelines effectively. Meanwhile, uncertainty remains as provincial governments have not yet formally announced revised business closure timings within their areas, despite the federal notification.
These restrictions follow initial measures introduced in April aimed at conserving energy due to soaring domestic fuel prices linked to Middle East tensions. The federal government’s austerity strategy included nationwide limits on business hours to curb energy consumption.
However, these measures were temporarily relaxed ahead of Eid ul Adha, observed from May 27 to 29. On May 18, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif approved a nationwide exemption from the closure timings until May 31, allowing commercial centers to operate freely during that period. This decision aligned with similar relaxations announced by provincial governments.
In Punjab, authorities extended the relaxed operating hours for markets and commercial centers until June 1, suspending the mandatory 8pm closing. Likewise, Sindh lifted fixed closing hours for markets, malls, restaurants, hotels, and marriage halls on May 16 to support economic activity and ease burdens on traders and the public.
The provinces of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan also ended their energy-saving restrictions by lifting limits on market and business operating hours, effectively halting the austerity measures within their jurisdictions.
