A paramilitary soldier patrols at Abbato Karaz village near Chaman, along the Afghan border. -AP Photo

QUETTA People in Chaman and other border towns may face an acute shortage of fuel because of a crackdown launched by the Afghan authorities against smugglers of petrol and diesel in Afghanistan.

Afghan border security personnel are reported to have seized a huge quantity of petrol and diesel in the border town of Spin Buldak and in the border trading post of Vash Mandi.

Hundreds of Pakistanis and Afghans in Chaman and Spin Buldak are involved in smuggling fuel from Afghanistan.

We are facing a shortage of petrol and diesel, a senior Afghan border official said.

A large quantity of petrol and diesel is smuggled into Afghanistan from Iran.

US supplies fuel to Nato and its own troops deployed in Afghanistan via Pakistan.

Smuggled Iranian petrol and diesel were available in border areas of Balochistan at rates cheaper than those of Pakistani fuels.

After the budget, the price of Iranian petrol increased manifold as Pakistan petrol was not available at the petrol pumps in Quetta and other parts of Balochistan.

Owners of petrol pumps claimed that oil marketing companies were not providing enough fuel to meet Balochistan's needs.