'Cutting Chai': Pakistan, World’s Largest Tea Importer, Asks People To Cut Down Consumption

According to the Observatory of Economic Complexity, the South Asian nation of 220 million is the world's largest importer of tea, buying more than $640 million worth in 2020.

A tea vendor prepares tea for customers at a road side stall in Lahore on December (Source: File photo/AFP)

New Delhi: Pakistan, which is facing an economic crisis, has appealed to its people to reduce their consumption of tea. Pakistan's Minister of Planning and Development, Ahsan Iqbal urged the public to reduce its consumption of tea, saying the move would help the government reduce import spending. The government of Pakistan will help in reducing the import expenditure of tea by taking loans. The government of Pakistan is importing tea by taking loans and wants that the import expenditure on it can be reduced.

According to the Observatory of Economic Complexity, the South Asian nation of 220 million is the world's largest importer of tea, buying more than $640 million worth in 2020.

The minister has appealed to the traders and the people of the country to be helpful in getting the country out of the crisis situation. He has told the traders that the country is facing a power crisis, so the market should be closed till 8:30 pm.

"I appeal to the nation to cut down the consumption of tea by one to two cups because we import tea on loan," Iqbal said, according to Pakistani media.

Last month, the government of Pakistan banned the import of 41 items for two months to reduce the import expenditure, but it does not show much benefit. This import ban has reduced the import bill by only $ 600 million. This is 5 percent of the total import expenditure.

Pakistan’s Federal Minister Ahsan Iqbal is seen appealing to Pakistanis to consume less tea because even the tea they drink is imported after taking loans.

When Pakistanis trolled Indians in Abhinandan’s case saying Tea Is Fantastic, they were not wrong.

It really is ☕️ pic.twitter.com/xXlvpumr5L

— Major Gaurav Arya (Retd) (@majorgauravarya) June 14, 2022

This decision of the government has affected the import of cars, mobile phones, cosmetics, cigarettes, food products, some clothing and toiletries.

Talking to the media, Iqbal accused the previous government of Pakistan of destroying the economy. He said that former Prime Minister Imran Khan and his party destroyed the country's economy and accepted their crime saying that our government was trapped after coming to power.

Shahbaz Sharif's minister said that he has come to power to save the country. He expressed hope that the economy will stabilize in the next few months.

Iqbal also said that he is giving special emphasis on the agriculture sector and farmers are being encouraged to promote the production of wheat, sugar and cotton. He said that farmers are also being asked to increase the production of palm oil so that the country can get foreign exchange from its export.