KARACHI: The government’s decision to stop the PTI long march to Islamabad on Wednesday by blocking roads in major cities of Punjab is hampering deliveries of fuel products in the province, which may result in late supplies to pumps.

This was stated by the Oil Companies Advisory Council (OCAC) while confirming the availability of sufficient stocks of fuel products in the country, including depots in the Punjab region. Oil marketing companies (OMCs) are making fuel deliveries to retail outlets, but the deliveries are being hampered due to road blockades in the major cities of Punjab, they claimed.

The OCAC further expressed concern over the prevailing situation of road blockades and speculation regarding low stocks circulating on various forums, and requested the public to avoid panic buying.

“There are ample stocks of petrol and high speed diesel (HSD) in the Punjab region and OMCs are making their best efforts to top-up the retail outlets timely, despite the road blockages,” the OCAC said in a statement.

The council has also shared these concerns with the Punjab chief secretary and further requested the support of the local administration for the safe and secure movement of tank lorries from respective depots to various petrol pumps across the province, till the situation normalises.

Published in Dawn, May 25th, 2022