ROURKELA/BERHAMPUR/JEYPORE : The ongoing strike by the drivers’ association has disrupted supply of essential commodities including fuel, vegetablesand fertilisers in many districts.
In Rourkela and other regions of Sundargarh district, petrol pumps are likely to run dry by Friday afternoon if fresh stocks fail to arrive in time. General secretary of Sundargarh Petroleum Dealers’ Association Prabhat Tibrewal said the district has around 200 fuel stations, most of them in Rourkela, and existing stocks are depleting rapidly.
The Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL) stations are supplied fuel stocks by the Jharsuguda depot. Similarly, the Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum pumps receive their stocks from Paradip. As of Thursday evening, over 10 IOCL tankers had been dispatched from Jharsuguda to Rourkela under police protection, he said.
Additionally, more than 15 BPCL and HPCL oil tankers left Paradip on Monday, but were reportedly halted at multiple locations due to the strike. While fuel stations saw heavy rush on Thursday, there was no panic buying yet.
Meanwhile, vegetable prices have shot up across Ganjam district due to the drivers’ strike which has disrupted supply lines. At Berhampur’s wholesale markets, the price of tomatoes is hovering between Rs 50 and Rs 60 per kg, while cauliflower is being sold at Rs 100-Rs 110. Okra is selling at Rs 60-Rs 65 per kg, drum sticks Rs 100-Rs110, beans Rs 150-Rs 160, cowpeas Rs 100-Rs 110, bitter gourd Rs 80-Rs 90, snake gourd Rs 80-Rs 90 and pointed gourd Rs 100-Rs 110.
Middle-class families are feeling the pinch, and even restaurants and hotels are struggling to cope with the rising prices. Wholesalers attributed the hike to various factors including disruption in supply chains.
In the tribal districts of Koraput, Malkangiri and Nabarangpur, the strike has halted the transportation of urea fertiliser, threatening the kharif cultivation. Farmers of these districts had sown maize and paddy in May and June, taking advantage of favourable weather. With the crops now at a critical growth stage, they urgently require urea for top dressing.
A fertiliser rack carrying around 2,600 tonne of urea arrived at Jeypore railway station three days ago. However, the stock remains stuck in the goods trains due to the strike. The officials of IFFCO are guarding the stock as it cannot be unloaded or transported to the agricultural outlets.