Cheap petrol goes missing from Khyber to Gwadar

You may wish for anything but you cannot get everything. If you do not believe in this then please check the curious case of cheap petrol which has gone missing from Khyber to Gwadar on the very day the government slashed its price.

Take Lahore as an example where, according to 24NewsHD TV channel, petrol is either not available or there are long lines of vehicles in case of availability. Petrol, in fact, is a sort of precious mineral nowadays as it is being sold in the black market.

The petroleum marketing companies did not buy the product with a hope of getting it at a cheaper price that resulted in this shortage. However, they gave the orders after the price was slashed on June 1. The marketing companies are now saying that the situation will improve in the coming two or three days.

But the petroleum dealers say why the government authorities didn’t check the stock as it is mandatory for the marketing companies. It is mandatory for these companies to maintain the stock for 20-day consumption requirements.

Obviously, this situation makes you do crazy things. For example, a citizen in Sargodha removed his clothes and threatened to commit self-immolation at a petrol pump in protest against the shortage.

Meanwhile, the people in Peshawar and Mardan too are spending hours on finding and buying petrol, as long lines of motorists are seen at those filling stations where petrol is being sold.

And in Balochistan, the petroleum dealers say tankers filled with petrol are parked in Quetta but not delivering the supply to them, causing an artificial shortage across the province.

As the marketing companies stopped supplying the product, the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority, at last, came into action and has issued notices to three marketing companies – Shell, Attock and Total, asking them to explain the reason behind this shortage.

On the other hand, 24NewsHD TV channel reported another side of the story too as illegal filling stations have mushroomed in Jaffarabad district of Balochistan, where petrol and diesel smuggled from Iran are being sold openly.