Oil strike hits vehicular traffic

Several vehicles went off the roads in Orissa as most of the petrol pumps in the state went dry on Thursday in response to the call for the nationwide stir given by the executives of public sector oil companies in the country.

As many as 476 petrol pumps in the state belonging to Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) and about 250 outlets of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) went dry due to the strike. Although the 284 outlets of Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) were functioning, they were inadequate to cater to the oil requirements of the state, claimed the striking officers.

The supply of LPG cylinders in the state was also severely hit as three out of four bottling plants owned by the public sector oil marketing companies went out of operations. The only functional bottling plant was that of HPCL as its employees did not join the stir. Out of the four bottling plants in the state, two belongs to IOC while BPCL and HPCL own one each. The oil PSU (public sector undertaking) officers from 14 major oil companies in the country under the umbrella organisation , Oil Sector Officers’ Association (OSOA), launched their indefinite strike from Wednesday, demanding higher wages.

Several passenger vehicles belonging to private owners as well as the state-owned Orissa State Road Transport Corporation (OSRTC) went off the roads in the south Orissa districts due to inadequate availability of fuel. "We have decided not to operate the buses as the diesel is not available", said a bus owner. Traders feel that the ongoing truckers’ strike coupled with the stir called by the officers of the major oil companies would lead to a serious condition in the coming days.