As many as 150 fuel retailers have had their licenses cancelled in India for being involved in malpractices including under-measurement and adulteration.
Not many of us bother much while getting our vehicles refuelled from well-known fuel stations across the country. However, there seems to be many issues cropping up from such stations from time to time. When such a case is reported, it does not go down well for the particular company under whose name the fuel station functions, including state-run retailers Indian Oil Corp, Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum. Anyhow, 150 petrol and diesel fuel retail outlets across the country have had their licenses terminated after they were found to be involved in malpractices including the likes of adulteration and under-measurement of transport fuels.
Since the last three years, oil marketing companies have shut down 160 fuel retail outlets due to similar problems. According to the Petroleum Minister, aforementioned state-run oil marketers have found adulteration to take place in as many as 195 outlets and under measurement in 3516 units. If the cases of adulteration and under-measurement is proved, the retailer’s license can be cancelled under the Marketing Discipline Guidelines (MDG)/Dealership Agreement.
This comes across as very bad news amidst the rising oil prices in our country. There is no good reason as to why such malpractices take place in India even though the state-run retailers do not face much of a competition from private companies as such. The government is relying on automation and monitoring the movement of trucks through GPS to prevent irregularities in fuel services. The states of Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra were on top of the list of fuel retail outlets involved in malpractices.
