Panic buying empties fuel pumps in Sambhajinagar amid rumours

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: Many fuel outlets in urban and rural parts of Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar ran out of petrol and diesel by late Wednesday evening after queues gradually increased throughout the day.A few outlets in the city had remained closed since morning due to the unavailability of fuel, which was attributed to local issues, and rumours of a petrol and diesel shortage spread by evening.District dupply officer Pravin Phulari said panic buying by customers led to the daily stock of fuel almost getting exhausted by late evening. "The district received its daily quota of 19 lakh litre of petrol and diesel, but panic buying resulted in many outlets running out of stock," he said, adding that normalcy is expected to get restored by Thursday morning when a fresh fuel supply is recievedPhulari also appealed to residents to not believe any rumours.Meanwhile, the Petroleum Dealers Association (PDA) of Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar wrote a letter to regional Heads and sales officers of different oil marketing companies, requesting a strategic briefing session on operational continuity amid geopolitical tensions. "A collaborative session will help the dealer community better understand and address specific concerns related to supply, payments, and operational constraints. Our goal is to establish a shared understanding of the difficulties both OMCs and dealers may face," PDA president Aqeel Abbas said.