BHUBANESWAR: After a frenzied week which saw petrol pumps at many places in the state run dry due to panic buying, the stations, replenished with stock, were left staring at emptiness on Sunday.
Petrol pumps across Twin City Bhubaneswar and Cuttack, and various other cities and towns wore a deserted look with fuel station staff idling without customers after days of unprecedented rush triggered by rumours of fuel shortage.
“This was inevitable. We never witnessed such rush over the past week. People who bought fuel in minimal quantities form a major chunk of the daily customer base. Driven by panic that was fuelled by TV and social media, they filled their tanks. This was a major reason for pumps running dry. Now, as we have got the stock refilled, we will have to wait for them to use their fuel. This situation will prevail for the next few days,” said a staff of a petrol pump in the capital city.
Major petrol pumps in the state recorded more than 70 per cent below normal sales on Sunday as panic buying subsided. Dealers said the artificial spike in demand, fuelled by viral social media posts, had far exceeded normal tanker delivery cycles.
All India Utkal Petroleum Dealers’ Association general secretary-and owner of Rajdhani Service Station in Unit-II of the capital city Sanjay Lath said the demand had fallen considerably after people realised there was no disruption in fuel supply. “Our daily petrol and diesel sale is 15,000 litre and 8,000 litre respectively. Sales at the pump were around 60 per cent below normal on Sunday,” he said. The state capital’s daily consumption of petrol and diesel stands at 3.40 lakh kL and 2.30 lakh kL respectively.
Fuel station owners said commuters had already stocked fuel beyond their immediate requirements, leading to the sharp drop in sales. Khandagiri fuel station owner Atul Lath said normal consumption pattern was likely to return in two to three days. Mahinder Singh Kalsi, owner of a fuel station in Kharavela Nagar said the situation would normalise within a week.
At Cuttack too, petrol pumps witnessed dull business through the day. “We sold nearly 10,000 litres of petrol every day earlier this week against our usual daily sale of 4,000-5,000 litres. The mad rush has settled down now and normal business is expected to resume in the next three to four days,” said Yogesh Lath, partner of a petrol pump at Link Road.
Meanwhile, following the state government’s direction to oil companies to keep depots operational on Sunday, more than 300 fuel tankers reportedly left for petrol pumps across districts. However, several pumps in districts such as Balangir and Sonepur continued to face supply shortages and witnessed long queues. Authorities said all pumps would receive fresh stock by Monday evening.