Manipur Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution (CAF&PD) Minister L Sunsindro said that starting Tuesday, he will deploy police personnel and department officials at all oil pumps to curb the menace of black marketing of petroleum products and to check alleged extortion activities.
Speaking to the media, Minister L Susindro said that the state has been experiencing an acute shortage of petroleum products, which he described as "artificial".
As a result, there has been panic buying and alleged extortion by non-state actors at the oil pumps, he said.
"It is regrettable that we are witnessing such a situation, with some individuals taking advantage of it. However, I can assure you that there is no dearth of petroleum products in the state," said the minister.
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To mitigate the problem, the Minister noted that the state's daily average requirement of petroleum is 298 KL. He stated that on August 25, the state rationed 272 KL, 260 KL on August 22, and 368 KL on August 20, and emphasized that "There should not be a shortage of petroleum products".
Appealing to the public to stop harassing petrol pump owners, the minister added, "Department officials will begin monitoring these pumps. If anyone is found manipulating the situation, they will be dealt with according to the law of the land."
Meanwhile, Director (CAFPD) Robertson Asem in a letter to SPs has said that purchase of petrol/diesel in containers or jerrycans should not be allowed at the retail outlets and that legal action would be taken up against such practice.
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Further, the district SPs were asked to provide security to all oil pumps for smooth functioning.
As of today, 56 retail oil outlets in Imphal West, Imphal East, Thoubal, Bishnupur and Kakching districts had been supplied a total of 339 kilolitres (KL) of petrol for sale to the general public on Tuesday August 27, according to the letter from CAFPD Director.
The quantity of petrol supplied to the retail outlets range from 4 KL to 9 KL.
