LUCKNOW: The fuel mafia in Uttar Pradesh (UP) have hit the headlines again as they have discovered a new and hi-tech way of duping gullible customers. In a late night swoop on petrol pump stations across the State capital, UP special task force (STF) caught eight owners using an electronic chip which fetched them profits worth lakhs per month in the State.
The STF, as a result, seized all the eight petrol pump stations and arrested 23 persons while action on others continued on Friday.
Union petroleum minister, Dharmendra Pradhan, on Friday congratulated the team of UP-STF by tweeting, "Congratulations to UP STF for unearthing the racket involved in short delivery of fuel at Petrol Pumps. Appreciate the good work of @UP govt."
“It is a state-wide racket of petrol pump owners. We have already seized eight petrol pumps in the State capital and raids are still going on. It is a case of hi-tech theft,” said ASP STF Arvind Chaturvedi.
Elaborating further, Chaturvedi said the fuel station owners were found to use a chip in their dispensing system which reduced the output of the machine by 6%.
Following a tip-off by an informer, the STF tracked a person called Ravinder, a Lucknow-based electrician who devised the chip and used to sell it for Rs 3000.
According to the STF, Ravinder had admitted to have sold the chip to over 1000 petrol pump owners across UP, who were now on the STF’s radar.
Based on leads given by Ravinder, eight stations were identified across Lucknow. “Chips and remote were recovered from the managers. The remote control is used to set the limit. On asking for one litre petrol, the customer will actually receive only 940 ml if the dispensing machine is fitted with this chip. So, 60 ml is saved for the pump owner,” explained an STF member.
According to SSP (STF), other pumps would also be raided. On an average, petrol pumps using this device were earning an undue profit Rs 14 -15 lakh per month, he added. However, the administration is contemplating on booking the errant petrol pump owners on charges of loot and robbery.