Rumours trigger panic buying, petrol bunks run dry in Medak

Rumours of a petrol and diesel shortage triggered panic buying across the erstwhile Medak district, leading to long queues and empty fuel stations. Social media posts showing queues worsened the rush.

Sangareddy: Rumours of shortage in petrol and diesel forced vehicle users to make a beeline to petrol bunks across the erstwhile Medak district since Tuesday evening.

As vehicle users rushed to fill their tanks, several petrol bunks across the district exhausted the fuel stocks and began displaying “No Stock’ boards. The situation turned worse in Cheriyal town of Siddipet district, as five petrol bunks out of six exhausted their stocks. A huge number of vehicles made a beeline to the solitary petrol bunk.

---

As consumers shared videos and pictures on social media showing serpentine queues at fuel stations, which further worsened the situation, more and more people arrived at fuel stations as the day progressed.

District Civil Supplies Officer, Siddipet, Tanuja said that the sales of petrol and diesel increased two-and-a-half to three times as consumers resorted to panic buying. As consumers were storing petrol in tins and cans, she warned them not to store the petrol and diesel in plastic vessels since it may lead to fire accidents.

However, she clarified that there was no shortage of petrol in the State. Meanwhile, officials across the district inspected petrol bunks to assess the situation. Staff at many petrol bunks were seen suggesting customers to buy only the fuel needed for the day, as everyone was asking for full tank refills.