LAHORE: Taking into account the severe shortage of petrol in the city, the Ministry of Petroleum decided to suspend the one-day closure of CNG stations. CNG stations in the city will remain open on Tuesday (today).
The shortage entered its second week on Monday. Majority of the petrol pumps remained closed on the first working day of the week. The ones that were open sold petrol for a few hundred rupees with vehicles lined up in long queues in hopes of getting a few litres of fuel. Motorcycles were filled with Rs50 petrol while cars were given petrol up to Rs300 to Rs350. Contrary to this trend, private dealers continued to sell petrol in larger quantities but at a higher price, charging at least Rs120 per litre. In some areas they charged as much as Rs150 per litre.
A number of people could not go to offices. “I had purchased petrol for Rs120 per litre on Friday but my tank emptied after two days, said a banker Saeed Malhi, adding, “I could not get petrol on Sunday or Monday morning so I did not go to office on Monday.” Parents complained that they had to pay extra to send their children to school. “I had to hire a rickshaw at Rs150 for a distance of three kilometres,” said Azhar Ali.
Consumers criticised the authorities for not being able to control the situation despite the lapse of one week. “The petroleum ministry should have taken action by now,” said Imran Ahmed while standing in a queue at a Model Town Link Road petrol station. “I have had to wait for an hour to get five litres of petrol,” he said. A motorcyclist Naeem Ashraf told a similar story. “I waited for 50 minutes only to get petrol for Rs50.” “I think people are supposed to leave everything and stand in a queue to get petrol,” he said adding that he had had to walk a long way after his motorcycle ran out of petrol. “It seems we are going back to the Stone Age. We have neither fuel nor electricity.”
The Ministry of Petroleum notified Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) not to suspend gas supply to CNG stations in the city, said an official of SNGPL. All Pakistan CNG Association chairman, Ghayas Abdullah Paracha, confirmed that all CNG stations in the Punjab would remain open on Tuesday. However, Tariq Mehmood complained that opening CNG stations would not solve his problem. “My car runs on petrol, not CNG. What should I do?” he said.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 21st, 2010.
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