Panic buying of petrol, diesel, and LPG is surging across India, fueled by the West Asia conflict and concerns over supply disruptions via the Strait of Hormuz. Despite government assurances of sufficient stock, social media is rife with images of long queues and turmoil at fuel stations in cities like Hyderabad, Surat, and Ahmedabad.
Panic buying of petrol, diesel and LPG is surging amid the ongoing West Asia conflict and uncertainty over fuel supply. The situation looks to be having an impact on individuals' life, despite the government's claim that there is no scarcity of fuel, diesel or liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) in the country. The near-closure of the Strait of Hormuz, which transports 40% of India's crude oil imports, has hampered shipping and gas supplies.
Several online users shared their concern, showing images of huge lines of motorists at gas outlets. Videos of turmoil at gas pumps in Hyderabad, Surat, Ahmedabad, Kutch, Nagpur, and Indore, among other places, have gone viral, showing people queuing for hours to fill up their vehicles amid fears about future fuel availability.
A user wrote, “I've booked a cylinder on 15 March. 11 days and still it's not delivered. As of now, an Indian oil petrol pump just 100 mtrs away from my residence displayed a board stating NO STOCK.”
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A second user asked, “People lining up at a petrol pump in India amidst the global fuel crisis due to the West Asia war. Is it because of a lack of fuel stocks, or people are panic hoarding?”
A third user enquired about the fuel scarcity scenario in Hyderabad, to which a user responded, "Yup, it's true; I was driving to the office at 7:30 a.m. today and encountered heavy traffic at every petrol pump."
Another person commented, “The HP gas pump at my house is closed today. So the answer appears to be yes.”
Another user wrote, “While govt continuously announcing sufficient stock of petrol, but today mornig all petrol pump in mundra stock out & closed. Went to 3 fuel pump 1 has board no petrol others have very huge que (sic).”
To address “longstanding challenges”, the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas seeks to strengthen natural gas and Petroleum Products Distribution infrastructure by expanding and building pipelines across the country. These measures come in the wake of shutdowns at Gulf liquefaction facilities supplying India and the continued blockage in the Strait of Hormuz.
