Panic buying causes fuel shortage in Sangli and Kolhapur pumps

Kolhapur: Panic buying triggered by a fuel price hike led to several petrol pumps in Sangli and parts of Kolhapur district running dry on Tuesday, even as authorities insisted there was no shortage of stock.The rush followed an increase in fuel prices earlier in the day, with petrol rising by 94 paise to Rs 108.53 per litre, and diesel by 90 paise to Rs 95.6 per litre. Anticipating further hikes, vehicle owners queued up at pumps, rapidly depleting available supplies.“Upon learning that the prices are again going to increase, I decided to fetch diesel to run my tractor to carry out farm activities,” said Omkar Gavade, a resident of Bhilawadi.In Kolhapur district, while city pumps continued operations, many rural outlets resorted to rationing sales to manage demand. “The maximum limit a biker could buy petrol was of Rs 200,” said a commuter.Despite the shortages at retail outlets, district officials maintained that fuel supplies remained adequate. “There is no shortage. Sangli district has a petrol stock of 2,410 kiloliter, diesel 2,732 kiloliter. There is no need to panic,” said Ashish Phuluke, acting district supplies officer of Sangli.Officials attributed the disruption to sudden demand spikes rather than supply constraints, even as long queues and dry pumps reflected the immediate impact of price-driven panic buying.