The Supreme Court (SC) while issuing orders in Gujrat bus tragedy case in which 16 school-going children and a teacher were burnt to death, asked the government to stop the open sale of petrol but the illegal business has emerged as a one of the more profitable businesses in the city.
If you visit the metropolitan city, you will find stalls where petrol is available usually at higher prices as compared to petrol pumps. The business often thrives in underdeveloped areas particularly slums where there are fewer petrol pumps. Some of the people involved in this business told Pakistan Today that they purchased petrol from the pumps and then sold it in the open at a small profit. Petrol pump dealers, however, rejected the claim and said that they were selling smuggled Iranian petrol.
During investigation, the people involved in this business claimed that they were sharing the proceeds with the local police who, in return, let them run their businesses. Malir, Landhi, Korangi, Orangi and Lyari are some of the areas where you may find a number of stalls selling petrol in open.
The apex court issuing orders in Gujrat school bus tragedy observed that availability of open petrol is a violation of Rule 21 of Petroleum Rules, 1985.
“Following orders of the apex court, we have issued a circular to all of our dealers across the country and informed them that open sale of petrol is strictly prohibited,” an official of Pakistan State Oil (PSO) told Pakistan Today.
“We have warned them if any dealer is found involved in open sale of petrol then the state-owned oil company, in light of apex court’s orders, reserves the right to take action against them,” he added.
“We are issuing directives to pump owners repeatedly to not sell petrol in cans or bottles,” the spokesman said, adding, “If you find any PSO station selling petrol to people without vehicles, let us know, we will take action against them.” Responding to another question, he said that the company was not responsible for sale of petrol on stalls in parts of the city by some people.
“However, the apex court’s decision to not sell open petrol has created problems for private school owners,” Private School Management Association (PSMA) Chairman Sharfuz Zaman said.
“Gujrat school bus tragedy was an accident and it should be treated as an accident,” Zaman said, adding, “The van drivers keep petrol in store to use it in case of emergency. Thousands of people, putting everyone’s lives at risk, use CNG and LPG cylinders in their vehicles, but there is no one to take action against them,” the PSMA chairman maintained.
“I have a stock of 10 litres of petrol at my home to run the power generator during load shedding hours. This may also be a dangerous practice but I have no option,” he said.
“We have filed a case in Sindh High Court (SHC) against sale of Iranian petrol on stalls,” Pakistan Petroleum Dealers Association (PPDA) Chairman Abdul Sami Khan said. “The court has ordered the law enforcement agencies to remove the stalls selling open petrol but the orders of the court have not been implemented as yet,” Khan said.
“In Karachi, 90 per cent of petrol being sold in open has been smuggled from Iran,” Khan claimed, adding, “Sale of this smuggled oil not only hurts the national exchequer but is also bad for vehicles using the impure fuel. We are continuously writing to the provincial government and law enforcement agencies for removal of these stalls but they take no action as police itself is involved in this crime,” he said.