Hyderabad: A strike called by autorickshaw drivers due to the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) shortage at an Indian Oil petrol pump near Sagar Highway in LB Nagar brought traffic to a standstill on Wednesday, April 1.
Police quickly intervened and cleared out the traffic in 15 minutes, LB Nagar Traffic Police told Siasat.com.
Even though the situation did not escalate this time, autorickshaw drivers have been struggling due to the fuel crunch triggered by US-Israel strikes on Iran since mid-March, with the long queues resulting in lost time and reduced earnings.
On March 20, Telangana Gig and Platform Workers’ Union (TGPWU) alleged that filling stations across the country are deliberately restricting the supply of compressed natural gas (CNG) and auto LPG to create fake scarcity and encourage black marketing.
This was when the government had maintained that there was no fuel shortage. However, on March 30, Telangana Minister for Food and Civil Supplies N Uttam Kumar Reddy wrote to Union Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri seeking urgent intervention to address a severe shortage of auto LPG in the state.
He said that supply crunch is disrupting public transport and threatening the livelihoods of around 1 lakh autorickshaw drivers.
Uttam Kumar said a daily shortfall of around 55 metric tonnes of auto LPG has left a majority of private distribution outlets facing a dry-out, causing widespread disruption to public transport services.
He added that while domestic LPG supply was being maintained at 100 per cent in keeping with the Government of India directives, the auto LPG segment had taken a significant hit.
He also pointed to a widening gap between public and private sector rates, with auto LPG at Public Sector Undertakings (PSU) outlets priced at Rs 75 per litre, while private operators are charging Rs 93 per litre.
Cancelled cylinder bookings
On the other hand, customers in Secunderabad reportedly received a message saying their LPG cylinder booking had been cancelled, prompting them to storm their distributor, causing panic and confusion.
Customers flocked to the Hindustan Petroleum (HP) distributor in Alwal, where the staff calmed them down, saying the message went out because it was the end of the month and their bookings still stood.
They were assured that their cylinder would arrive within 15 days of the booking and were asked not to panic.
