HYDERABAD: Chaos was the order of the day in Hyderabad on Tuesday with commuters caught in seemingly never-ending traffic jams as motorists, alarmed by rumours of fuel supply being cut and pumps running dry, tried to fill up. As motorists converged on fuel stations, the rush soon spilt onto the road, slowing down traffic. By the evening, when schools and offices closed for the day and the number of vehicles out on the roads increased, the main roads were gridlocked. Traffic spilled into the lanes and bylanes and chaos ensued.
Almost every major road witnessed bumper-to-bumper traffic, and there was very little the police could do, to save struggle. It all began with truck drivers, taxi, and bus operators calling a three-day strike against the newly-passed Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita, which imposes a Rs 7 lakh penalty and a 10-year jail term for hit-and-run cases. As news of the strike spread, it fanned rumours that all fuel pumps would remain closed for the next three days. Soon enough, people began thronging petrol bunks to fill up, and the fuel bunks started running out of stock.
On Tuesday evening, Civil Supplies Commissioner DS Chauhan confirmed that the strike was called off by the truckers. He appealed to the public not to resort to panic buying of petrol or diesel, as there will be no shortage of its supply. Chauhan held an emergency meeting with officials of oil companies — BPCL, IOCL and HPCL — at the Civil Supplies Bhavan where he instructed them to take appropriate measures so that there was no shortage of fuel and that the people do not face any problems. A member of the truckers association said, “We will reach out to the Centre over the issue as these provisions, yet to come into force, could lead to undue harassment and must be recalled.”
Heated arguments
Frustrated over waiting for hours, a few commuters at a petrol bunk in Secunderabad began arguing over whose turn it was to fill up. The argument got particularly heated, forcing the police to step in and bring the situation under control. Anticipating a reduction in petrol and diesel rates by the Union government as elections are on the horizon, many bunk owners have been reluctant to opt for full stock. Consequently, several petrol pumps soon ran out of stock and began putting up ‘No Petrol’ signs and barricading the entry points. Expecting stocks to arrive, motorists started waiting at the fuel stations.
A commuter, Dheer, who was seen pushing his bike as he ran out of petrol said, “I was unaware of the situation and ran out of fuel. I pushed my bike for about 2 km from one petrol bunk to the other, and when I reached the second one, I saw the crowd. I got a chance to refill after waiting for around two hours,” he added.
Aashish, who waited for one hour at a petrol bunk in Secunderabad said, “I was not aware about the crowd at the petrol bunks and neither did I know anything about the strike. However, when I visited the fuel station, I found out that petrol was out of stock. Later, a tanker brought fresh stock and after two hours, I could fill petrol in my vehicle.”Meanwhile, people also complained that cab aggregators utilised the situation to hike fares.
Nithin, who chose to book a cab said, “I pay Rs 300 for my daily commute, but today, the fare came to Rs 450 for my travel. It was maybe due to all fuel stations running out of petrol and traffic congestion across the city.” The truckers’ strike also affected the supply of vegetables, fruits and other essentials.