Lahore : Chief Minister Punjab Maryam Nawaz officially launched Pakistan’s first eco-friendly E-Taxi Program in a grand ceremony held in Lahore, aiming to promote sustainable transportation and green mobility across the province.
In the program’s initial phase, 1,100 electric vehicles will be handed over to drivers, supported by a substantial Rs4 billion subsidy from the Punjab government. During the event, Maryam Nawaz personally distributed car keys to selected women beneficiaries and interacted with them about the initiative.
Under the scheme, women drivers will receive 60% of the vehicle’s down payment, while men will receive 50%, with the government covering registration, fitness certification, and token tax. Beneficiaries can pay the remaining amount in flexible five-year installments. The chief minister highlighted that participants could earn monthly incomes ranging between Rs150,000 and Rs200,000 through this program.
Maryam Nawaz also addressed economic relief measures, noting that she monitors daily essential commodity prices herself. She said that prices of flour, onions, and potatoes have declined significantly in Punjab and that efforts are being made to make fruits such as bananas and apples more affordable for citizens.
Emphasizing governance reforms, she instructed ministers to spend more time in the field rather than offices to directly assess public concerns.
Looking forward, the chief minister announced several upcoming projects for Punjab’s transport sector, including the province’s first trackless train, the introduction of modern green buses in every tehsil, and ongoing metro bus projects in Faisalabad and Gujranwala. She further confirmed the expansion of emergency services, including air ambulance availability and free heart transplant procedures, across the province.
