Amid social media buzz about ‘fuel price rise after elections’, panic at petrol pumps in Andhra, Telangana

SPeculations of an increment in fire prices after elections crosswise the rural area manifested in throngs of motorists queueing up at petrol pumps in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, attempting to stock up up on fuel.The motorists, fearing a shortage lined up their two-wheelers, cars, trucks and other vehicles at fuel stations, despite the government's assurance that there would no such shortage, and rejection of the reports.Many fuel stations in Andhra Pradesh have, for the past three days, been displaying ‘No Stock’ boards, with the authorities pinning the shortage on panic buying by consumers in anticipation of a disruption of petrol and diesel supply amid the West Asia crisis.Also Read | Fuel rush continues in Kheri amid shortage, price hike rumoursWhat triggered panic buying and queues?Some social media posts and a report by domestic brokerage Kotak Institutional Equities suggested that fuel prices could witness an increase following the conclusion of assembly elections on April 29. Kotak Institutional Equities had estimated a potential increase of ₹25–28 per litre for petrol, MoneyControl reported.However, the ministry of petroleum and natural gas denied that any such proposal related to hike petrol and diesel prices was under consideration.“Such news items are designed to create fear and panic amongst the citizens and are mischievous and misleading,” the ministry said in a statement.What is the situation in Andhra Pradesh?In Rajahmundry in Andhra Pradesh, people were seen carrying plastic containers, along with queues of vehicles, to carry petrol and diesel, news agency PTI reported. Meanwhile, the petrol pumps in Vijayawada's Ajit Singh Nagar, Auto Nagar and nearby areas saw crowds.On the ‘No Stocks’ boards and the throngs of commuters, Gopala Krishna, a member of the fuel retailers' association from Guntur, claimed that oil companies had supplied less fuel to dealers over the past week and stopped diesel supply, PTI reported.“We are receiving information that diesel is getting exhausted everywhere from our dealers…We are expecting that 70 to 80 per cent of petrol bunks will get fuel by tomorrow,” he said. One of the users on X highlighted “temporary closure of some petrol stations is due to supply-related issues.”Another user, tagging Andhra minister and TDP leader Nara Lokesh, complained of a “severe petrol shortage in Srikakulam district for the past 20 hours".“Most fuel stations are empty, leaving commuters and emergency services affected. Request your immediate intervention to resolve this issue,” they said.Andhra CM reviews shortage, directs restoring of fuel supplyAndhra chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu reviewed the reasons behind the petrol and diesel shortage in the state, and directed officials and oil companies to ensure that fuel supply meets the demand.Meanwhile, officials stated that the situation came to a head owing to commercial consumers purchasing fuel at retail outlets, news agency ANI reported. They further said that oil companies have stopped extending credit to retail outlets.Naidu questioned the suppliers and their representatives why credit facilities were stopped, and warned that their permissions may be reconsidered if this continues.In a post on X on Monday, BPCL said the fuel supply across Andhra was “steady”.“The current pressure being observed at some outlets is driven by a surge in demand due to panic buying, not a shortage of supply. When demand rises unusually in a short span, it can create temporary strain at retail points despite adequate availability,” it said, while saying it was “committed to maintaining uninterrupted supply.”