Long Lines of Cars at Petrol Pumps in Dhaka Amid Ongoing War in Middle East
By Bhanu Ranjan Chakraborty
DHAKA: Rumors that a fuel shortage could arise due to the ongoing war in the Middle East have spread in the capital Dhaka. As a result, long lines of cars were seen at various petrol pumps to buy fuel.
Buyers said that many people are filling their car tanks in advance, fearing that there could be a fuel shortage. This has increased the pressure of buyers at the pumps several times compared to normal times. Lines inside many petrol pumps in different areas of the capital Dhaka stretched for half a kilometer on the road. Due to excessive demand, some pumps were temporarily closed as fuel quickly ran out.
The manager of a pump in Dhaka said that during normal times they have 20,000 to 27,000 liters of oil in stock. But due to excessive demand, it is decreasing rapidly. Employees of a pump in the New Market area said that the traffic pressure from night to morning is one and a half to two times higher than normal. On the other hand, long queues of hundreds of tank trucks have been seen at the oil depot in Narayanganj since morning. A driver said that he has been waiting in a queue about a kilometer away for more than three hours.
Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC) said that the country currently has adequate stocks of diesel, petrol and octane. However, due to increased demand in recent times, the stocks have reduced comparatively.
According to the information, it is currently possible to maintain supply for about seven days with diesel stocks, about eight days with petrol and about 14 days with octane. However, BPC officials told the media that there is no reason to panic about fuel oil. Several ships carrying fuel oil have already reached Chittagong port and more ships are coming. Necessary measures have been taken to maintain normal supply.
Power and Energy Minister Iqbal Hassan Mahmud said that there is nothing to worry about fuel oil. Two more vessels will arrive by March 9. He told reporters that there is sufficient oil reserves and that there is nothing to panic about. He added that the government is trying to procure oil from alternative sources.
