45-litre tank, 52L petrol pumped: Kanpur car owner's shocking allegations on fuel pump

VIdeo of a gondola possessor in Uttar Pradesh's Kanpur supposedly making allegations on a petrol pump of inflated greenback has gone viral on societal media, prompting even the district administration to reportedly order an immediate investigation.According to the vehicle owner, Charan Singh, he took his new Volkswagen Virtus — which he said has a capacity of 45 litres of fuel — to petrol station in Harsh Nagar with the fuel indicator showing a near-empty tank.He alleged in a video that the petrol pump attendants initially pumped in around 41 litres of fuel, making him question the pause in the filling process. The attendants allegedly told him that large volumes of fuel are filled in two instalments and went on to fill the tank up.To his shock, Singh was later handed a bill that mentioned a total quantity of 52 litres of petrol — something he says was not possible as his car's tank has a total capacity of 45 litres.Questioning the pump staff, Singh said he immediately called the car manufacturing company and asked a representative to come to the petrol pump.The company official arrived and confirmed that the vehicle's tank could not hold more than 45 litres under any circumstances, Singh claimed in the video going viral on social media and cited in reports. Singh reportedly lodged a formal complaint alleging a systemic fraud racket operating with the collusion of local weights and measures officials.Fuel company official inspectsAn official of the fuel pump later addressed media and said the complaint regarding a 45-litre fuel tank allegedly accommodating over 52 litres of fuel was being investigated in the presence of oil company inspectors, the vehicle manufacturer as well as other relevant departments. According to the official, the measurements conducted during the inspection were found to be in order, and the verification was being carried out as per the prescribed guidelines.“A complaint was received that the vehicle’s fuel tank capacity is 45 litres, but around 52–54 litres of fuel was filled into it. Following this complaint, inspectors from the oil company, the Weights and Measures team, and representatives from the OEM have been called for an investigation. I am also present here along with our officials,” the official said at the petrol pump."The matter is being examined, and measurements are being carried out, as you can see. So far, everything has been found to be correct. We have the relevant guidelines with us. We will show those guidelines and conduct the verification accordingly,” he said.Later at a press interaction, the official said the fuel dispensing unit was inspected in the presence of the Weights and Measures department, oil company officials, and the vehicle manufacturer’s service engineer. According to him, the machine was opened using the OEM-authorised OTP, all seals were found intact, and the measurements taken during the inspection were accurate.He added that the entire exercise was videographed to maintain transparency. The official also noted that a vehicle’s stated fuel tank capacity often does not include an additional reserve volume, which can typically accommodate another 5–6 litres of fuel.