Kolhapur collector imposes purchase limits at petrol pumps till March 31

Kolhapur: District collector Amold Yedge imposed fuel purchase restrictions after several petrol pumps went dry on Wednesday. Under the new restrictions, two-wheeler and bike owners can get fuel worth Rs 200 at a time, while three-wheelers and four-wheelers can get fuel worth a maximum of Rs 2,000. The restrictions came into effect on Wednesday and will remain in place till March 31."There is an adequate stock of petrol and diesel. However, due to misinformation spread through social media, people are unnecessarily crowding the petrol pumps to buy fuel. The increased demand has caused temporary shortages. Considering the circumstances, I have decided to invoke the powers conferred upon me under the Disaster Management Act, Essential Commodities Act, I have passed the order to restrict the fuel supply up to certain limit," said Yedge.The Kolhapur collector said vehicle owners should abstain from bulk purchases, and said it would invite action against both the vehicle owner and the pump operator.Several videos of bulk fuel purchases at petrol pumps have been reported from Kolhapur city. Yedge has directed district supplies officer Mohini Chavan to send a team to such petrol pumps, verify the claim and seal the petrol pump.TOI brought to the notice of the district collector the hardships faced by ambulance service operators. Prashant Patil, who runs an ambulance service at CPR Hospital in Kolhapur, told TOI on Wednesday: "Last night, I had a call to transfer the patient from CPR Hospital to Radhanagari, which is 50 km from Kolhapur. I had adequate fuel to take the patient, but since several petrol pumps were shut along the route, I had to request the relatives to postpone the transfer. We get fuel at petrol pumps on priority only if there is a patient, but when we don't have a patient, no petrol pump is ready to refill the tank. Also, we are asked to stay in the queue, which usually takes more than one-and-a-half hours. During this time, we either miss the call to transfer the patient or have to request for other available ambulance."Yedge said, "Ambulances and other vehicles for essential services will be given priority at petrol pumps. We have asked the pumps to mandatorily put up details of the stock available, stock they have received and demand on a board to be placed upfront."