Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Hike fuels last-minute rush to bunks

— Photo: S. R. Raghunathan

MAKING A BEELINE: Motorists queue up at a petrol bunk in Chennai on Thursday.

CHENNAI: As the midnight deadline for the fuel price hike neared, a steady stream of vehicles was making a beeline for several petrol bunks in the city on Thursday.

While a number of petrol bunks witnessed long queues of autorickshaws waiting to fill petrol tanks to make a small saving, personal vehicle owners did not show signs of panic to refill petrol or diesel.

Usman, a two-wheeler owner, said the hike in petrol price has almost become inevitable and with the vehicles dependent on fuel, people have little option but to accept the increase. Moreover, personal transport has become necessary for many people in view of the undependable Metropolitan Transport Corporation bus services and the exorbitant fares demanded by autorickshaw drivers, he added.

Many autorickshaw drivers did not seem bothered about the increase in the fuel cost since they would pass it on to the customers.

S. Rajendran, an autorickshaw driver, said the hike in petrol prices would severely affect their daily earnings and also lead to more haggling with customers over price.

With effect from Thursday midnight, a litre of petrol will cost Rs.49.61, an increase of Rs.2.17. The new price of diesel per litre will be Rs.34.40, as against Rs.33.30.

According to M.Kannan, president, Tamilnadu Petroleum Dealers’ Association, the rush for fuel on Thursday compounded the problem of inadequate supplies at petrol bunks on the outskirts over the last week. He, however, said there was no significant panic buying in the city outlets, but the sales were more than usual. He said many bunks were not receiving adequate supplies.

Noting that customers seem to have taken the price hike in their stride, he said the upward revision would translate into enhanced investment in the stocks without any change in the dealer commission rates.

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