Gear up for No Purchase Day: from May 14, petrol pumps to remain shut on Sundays

Come May 14, commuters will find petrol pumps deserted on Sundays. Petrol pump owners across the country have threatened not to purchase petrol and diesel for a day on May 10 and subsequently shut outlets every Sunday if their demand for higher margins is not agreed upon by the government.

Though the ban is on Sunday, the pumps will operate from 9 am to 6 pm to cut their expenses. In a report by ET, the dealers' association has said that,

'No Purchase Day' on May 10 may not cause much disruption, but it is aimed at telling state-run oil marketing companies that they are opting for the war path.

In January, when a similar situation had arisen, the Odisha Mining Corporation (OMC) had promised revised rates. Ravi Shinde from the Petrol Dealers' Association said in the report,

We had withdrawn the strike threat in January after oil marketing companies assured to revise dealer commission rates. But nothing happened in four months. They said the agitation would continue till the business becomes viable and higher margins are announced.

Most of the oil companies have not released the dealer margins since 2011. The decision was taken at a meeting of the Consortium of Indian Petroleum Dealers (CIPD), which has 53,000 members. As of now most petrol pumps function for eight hours as opposed to the proposed 12-17 hours.

It is important to note that the CIPD comprises dealers from only Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Maharashtra. The All India Petroleum Dealers' Association has decided to stay away from the agitation, adding to the chaos.

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