The Karnataka State Federation of Petroleum Dealers (KSFPD) has decided to support the agitation call given by All India Petroleum Dealers’ Association, New Delhi, in connection with the poor revision in the dealer margin announced earlier this month by the oil marketing companies.
Addressing a press meet here on Tuesday, KSFPD vice president Prabhakar Shetty said that oil marketing companies like IOCL, HPCL and BPCL have not taken into consideration the report of Apoorva Chandra Committee in arriving at the revised dealer margin as suggested by the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas. The All India Petroleum Dealers’ Association president Ajay Bansal has given a call for nation-wide protest seeking justice in dealer margin, ethanol blending, transport tender, toilet maintenance, among other issues.
He said the agitation has been planned in phases with precautions taken in the interest of not causing inconvenience to the general public. If the authorities failed to take favourable action after first two phases, then it has been decided to take out ‘no sale no purchase’ protest, he said.
“The phase 1 of the protest will be held on October 19 to 26 where it has been proposed to switch off the lights and suspend sales only for 15 minutes between 7 pm and 7.15 pm. “This, we feel, will show our strength and unity to the concerned,” said Dakshina Kannada Udupi Petroleum Dealers Association (DKUPDA) president Anand Karnad.
Further, Karnad said the second phase of the protest will be held on November 3 where, the dealers have decided to go for no purchase. Dealers have already been requested to maintain sufficient stocks and not inconvenience the motoring traffic.
He said the third phase will be held on November 15 where the dealers will go for ‘no sale no purchase’ form of agitation.