Tamil Nadu   

Double blow to automobile users

KARUR: Even as the din raised by the political parties on the steep hike in prices of petroleum products is yet to settle down, automobile users in Karur have complained of a double blow.

One, they have been forced to endure the hike and, two, car and two-wheeler owners are being force fed with “branded products.” The vendor oil company might vary but their tactics remain the same, push the branded petro products that are dearer.

While the ordinary petrol costs Rs.55.11 a litre, the branded variety costs Rs.59.11, full four rupees extra. Similar is the case of diesel in which case the ordinary/regular variety costs Rs.37.48 a litre while the branded product is sold at Rs.39.73 for the same quantity.

When the branded products came into the picture some years back, there was a price difference of just about 50 to 60 paise vis-À-vis ordinary products. But now the price variation has climbed dramatically across all oil companies.

In many a case, salesmen at the fuel stations either say that the ordinary variety is not available or would offer only half the quantum the customer demands.

When asked, a fuel station owner said that an “artificial scarcity” was being thrust on the dealers and, in turn, on the customers by the oil companies. The oil majors are forcing the dealers to buy at least 10 per cent of their daily sales as branded varieties in both diesel and petrol.

“For the past few days I have been force-fed with branded fuel at different fuel stations in the town. It’s like they, and not me, deciding what I should buy. I’m shelling out Rs.4 per litre a day extra for the same fuel efficiency and is it not a fraud on the customer in creating a scarcity? Who will verify the stocks at these stations?” asks salesman S.R. Babu of Gandhigram, reflecting the mood of many a two-wheeler user in the town.

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