RAWALPINDI: Long queues of motorcyclists and motorists were seen at petrol stations on Wednesday night in the wake of a strike call given by the Pakistan Petroleum Dealers Association for Nov 25 and reports of fuel shortage.

Mohammad Saddiq, manager of a petrol filling station, told Dawn that stocks had finished at some stations. “People are buying extra, with majority of the people asking for a full tank,” he said.

On the other hand, people criticised the strike and said such situations created problems for road users.

Nasir Hussain, a motorcyclist in Saddar, said he wanted to purchase petrol as there were reports that the strike would start from Thursday. “I got the fuel for emergency,” he said.

Petrol stations and the government should find a solution as people will suffer because of the strike, he said, adding that after shortage of electricity and natural gas, citizens were now facing another crisis.

Nadir Malik, motorist at Airport Road, said he visited various filling stations for fuel but most were facing shortage. In the end, he had to queue up at a petrol station so that he could fill up his fuel tank, he added.

When contacted, spokesperson for Pakistan Petroleum Dealers Association said the Petroleum Division did not accept our demands and announced that they would forward the matter to the Economic Coordination Committee in the next 10 days.

He said all petrol filling stations in the country, including in Rawalpindi and Islamabad, would remain closed on Thursday and petrol would only be provided to ambulances. He ruled out any chance of cancelling the strike.

The Petroleum Division on Wednesday had announced that all petrol pumps of PSO, Shell, Total and other companies would remain open across the country on Thursday.

A statement issued by the Petroleum Division said the case to increase the margin for petrol pump owners had been sent to the Economic Coordination Committee.

Published in Dawn, November 25th, 2021