Fuel crunch may end in a couple of days: Joshi

Meeting of oil marketing heads, refinery firms convened

Chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Petroleum and Natural Gas, Pralhad V Joshi, on Wednesday said shortage of petroleum and diesel in parts of North Karnataka would possibly end in a couple of days.

Joshi, also a member of parliament from Dharwad, told reporters he had convened a meeting of heads of oil marketing and refinery firms on Thursday to understand the reasons for the shortage in supply of petrol and diesel in the northern Karnataka region.

He said he would explain to the officials the severity of problem in North Karnataka due to the sudden shortage of auto fuel and ask them to set things right at the earliest.

“The officials claimed that the supply was disrupted due to annual repair works undertaken at the MRPL plant in Mangaluru from where the oil marketing firms get fuel. They said the refinery had resumed its functioning and sought more oil tankers to supply fuel to scarcity-hit areas,” Joshi said. He said he had spoken to Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu and requested him to arrange for more tankers.

Several districts such as Belagavi, Gadag, Dharwad, Haveri, Bagalkot and Vijayapura had been facing fuel shortage for the past few days.