Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: Long queues of vehicles were seen at petrol pumps across the city once again on Monday. As some pumps ran dry, panicked vehicle owners rushed to other pumps, causing heavy crowding.
The city has a daily demand of four and a half lakh litres of petrol and diesel. Even a slight shortfall in supply leads to queues at pumps that day, and that is exactly what was witnessed on Monday.
Vehicle owners flocked to only a handful of pumps in the city that reliably provide petrol and diesel every day. On one side, two-wheelers were lined up for petrol, while on the other, cars were queued up for diesel.
Regarding this, Petroleum Dealers Association President Akhil Abbas explained that the Panewadi Depot at Manmad remains closed on Sundays as a weekly holiday. As a result, tankers from Marathwada arrive in larger numbers on Mondays, causing delays in filling and dispatching them. This leads to queues at several city pumps on Mondays. By evening, tankers had arrived at many pumps.
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Municipal Corporation has no tankers to fetch petrol
The city has two petrol pumps operated by the Chhatrapati Samb Municipal Corporation (CSMC).
However, the CSMC has not purchased its own tankers to transport fuel, relying instead on hired tankers. Since these hired tankers often arrive late, the pumps sometimes run dry. Vehicle owners have demanded that the Municipal Corporation purchase at least two tankers of its own to resolve this recurring issue.