Pune: Fuel dealers said petrol and diesel sales in the city have risen by around 20% over the past two to three days, even though there has been no visible rush at petrol pumps amid speculation about a possible fuel price hike.Dealers from the Petrol Dealers Association Pune and individual fuel station operators said consumers were increasingly opting to fill their tanks completely instead of purchasing smaller quantities, as they usually do.“There are no long queues or panic crowds at pumps, but people who earlier filled fuel worth Rs 500 or Rs 1,000 are now topping up their tanks fully. That automatically pushes up consumption,” a member of the Petrol Dealers Association Pune told TOI.Dealers said the trend appeared to have picked up around the same time as Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent appeal for fuel conservation amid the West Asia crisis and reports suggesting a possible rise in petrol and diesel prices.“On Wednesday, too, sales were approximately 20% higher than normal. The trend is similar across pumps and is not restricted to any one outlet,” the association source said.Another dealer said increased buying, driven by fears of a price hike, was contributing to the rise in sales.“People are afraid rates are going to increase, so they are buying more. My outlet has recorded an increase of around 1,000 to 1,500 litres in daily fuel sales over the past two days compared to other days. Customers who would usually buy fuel worth Rs 100 or Rs 200 for two-wheelers are now filling their tanks completely,” he said.A dealer clarified that fuel supply remained normal overall, although the sudden rise in demand had caused delays in stock refills. He added that the surge in demand was likely to be temporary.“This trend may continue for four to five days and then settle down once people have already filled their tanks,” the dealer said.Another petrol dealer, requesting anonymity, said there was no fuel shortage, but supplies were being delayed because of the sudden spike in demand.“Suppose a pump normally requires 100 litres and consumption rises to 130 litres. The additional quantity is arriving late because tanker turnaround time has increased,” he said.Another dealer said, “Sales have gone up at several pumps. At my outlet, there has been a 10-15% jump in sales over the last couple of days.”
