Pakistanis have been urged to drink less tea to help the country’s struggling economy.
The planning minister urged chai drinkers to reduce their consumption because import costs were draining the country’s foreign exchange reserves.
“He calls on the nation to reduce tea consumption by one or two cups so that we can import tea on loan,” Ahsan Iqbal said.
The 220 millionth South Asian nation is the largest importer of tea in the world.
Iqbal said market vendors have also been asked to close the store at 8.30pm to save energy.
He said this will help the country reduce the import bill of petroleum products.
Pakistan has been facing economic challenges for months, which have led to rising food, oil and gas prices.
The problems were at the heart of the political confrontation between Imran Khan, who was ousted as prime minister in April, and Shahbaz Sharif, his successor who led the opposition bid to oust Khan.
Khan has led nationwide protests against the new leadership since his ouster.
The country’s foreign exchange reserves have also fallen sharply, from $ 16.3 billion in late February to $ 10 billion in May, according to Reuters.
The $ 6 billion lost would have been enough to cover two months of imports.
Many in Pakistan have ridiculed Mr Iqbal’s plea on social media, saying that drinking less would do little to alleviate the country’s economic crisis.