Panic buying of fuel was also witnessed in several other states, including Maharashtra, Punjab, and Haryana.
Crowd in front of a fuel station in Hyderabad. (Ajay Tomar/South First)
Fuel pumps across several states witnessed long queues on Tuesday, 2 January, as people sought to tank up their vehicles fearing a fuel shortage due to a protest by truck drivers against a provision in the new penal law on hit-and-run accidents cases.
Under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, which replaces the colonial era Indian Penal Code, drivers who cause a serious road accident by negligent driving and flee without informing the police or any official could face up to 10 years imprisonment or a fine of ₹7 lakh.
According to transporters, it was a spontaneous agitation started by some over-enthusiastic drivers which got fuelled through messages circulated on social media.
No truckers’ body has officially declared any strike, they said.
Baba Shinde, a leader of transporters, said the All India Motor Transport Congress has convened a meeting of transporters from across the country to decide the future course of action.
On Tuesday, Hyderabad witnessed long queues in front of fuel bunks as rumours circulated of such stations downing shutters in three to four days due to the protests.
A fuel station owner at Srinagar Colony in Hyderabad said people feared a total shutdown if the drivers’ bodies went on strike.
“There is uncertainty by the tankers’ association whether there will be a strike in the coming days or not. Right now, no such thing has been communicated to us,” he told South First.
In #Hyderabad, queues are growing at #petrol stations due to sudden customer surge after nationwide truck drivers' strike. Owner of a #petrolpump told @TheSouthfirst that growing panic among citizens is due to fears that all HMV unions might also join strike. #PetrolDieselPrice pic.twitter.com/4xSNAScf80
— Ajay Tomar (@ajaytomarasks) January 2, 2024
A driver, who accidentally hits a person and subsequently informs police or takes the victim to the nearest hospital would not be prosecuted under the stringent provision of the recently enacted Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), a senior government functionary said on Tuesday, 2 January.
“Whoever causes the death of any person by rash and negligent driving of vehicle not amounting to culpable homicide, and escapes without reporting it to a police officer or a magistrate soon after the incident, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description of a term which may extend to 10 years, and shall also be liable to a fine,” the new law stated.
Dismissing as “misplaced” the apprehensions of some protesting truckers, the functionary said the provision of hit-and-run cases would apply to only those drivers who would try to escape without informing the police.
Meanwhile, Union Home Secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla has called the All India Motor Transport Congress for a meeting on Tuesday evening to discuss their grievances.
Fuel pumps across #Hyderabad witnessed long queues on Tuesday, 2 January, as people sought to tank up their vehicles fearing a fuel shortage due to a protest by truck drivers against a provision in the new penal law on hit-and-run accidents cases.
Long queues along with traffic… pic.twitter.com/48PtJMRuhk
— South First (@TheSouthfirst) January 2, 2024
A transporters’ body on Tuesday claimed the strike by truck drivers affected the movement of nearly five lakh vehicles in Madhya Pradesh.
Many passengers were seen stranded at the Inter State Bus Terminus (ISBT) in the state capital, Bhopal, as intercity buses stayed off the roads on Tuesday morning.
Some commuters complained of facing difficulties in travelling from Bhopal to Indore.
Huge crowds were also seen at fuel pumps in Bhopal, Indore, and other cities on Tuesday morning.
Some people claimed they could not get their vehicles refuelled as pumps ran dry.
However, the administration in various MP districts and major cities like Bhopal, Indore, Gwalior, and Jabalpur said there was no shortage of fuel at fuel stations under their areas of jurisdiction.
Motorists queued up at fuel stations at many places in Punjab and Haryana on Tuesday.
In Haryana, private bus operators and some auto-rickshaw unions joined the protest. Chandigarh, the common capital of the twin states, too, saw vehicle owners panic-buying fuel.
Secretary General of the Punjab Petroleum Dealers Association Rajesh Kumar said fuel supply to nearly 4,000 fuel stations in the state was hit due to the strike.
“As the news spread that truck drivers were holding protests, people rushed to fuel stations… We are also not getting replenishment of stocks… As these drivers are holding protests, they are also not allowing oil tankers to enter depots to get fuel stocks,” he alleged.
“If this situation continues, we are staring at a dry-out situation soon which prompted us to write a letter to the Punjab chief minister…,” Kumar added.
Ravinder Singh Khalsa, a truck driver, said they were demanding the withdrawal of the “stringent provisions” in the new law.
“The new law is against the interest of drivers. Nobody intentionally wants to injure or cause anyone’s death, but accidents happen. In such cases, people turn against the driver and sometimes the mob damages the vehicle and causes harm to the driver too. We demand that the new law be amended,” truck operator Sushil Kumar added.
The Maharashtra government has requested police to ensure an uninterrupted supply of petrol, diesel, and LPG cylinders.
Fuel pumps in Mumbai and Nagpur witnessed long queues on Tuesday.
Petrol Dealers Association, Mumbai, president Chetan Modi told PTI that the fuel supply to petrol pumps was affected due to the drivers’ agitation since Monday.
“Petrol pumps started getting dry yesterday. If we don’t get the supply, most of the pumps will run out of fuel today,” he said on Tuesday.
Mumbai has around 200 petrol pumps.
Modi said he went to the depots of oil marketing companies at Sewri in Mumbai, but the drivers were not letting any fuel tanker move out of the facility despite police security.
Truckers held protests against the provision in the new penal law on hit-and-run law road accident cases in parts of Rajasthan on Monday, affecting the movement of trucks, and private bus operators were affected by it.
Operation of roadways buses was also affected which resumed after police intervention.
“There were (traffic) jams on the Dholpur-Karauli route, Udaipur-Nathdwara route, Sawai Madhopur-Kota Lalsot route, Bhilwara-Ajmer route, and Anupgarh-Ganganagar due to the protest. Operation of roadways buses was affected but it resumed after police intervention,” Rajasthan State Roadways Transport Corporation Spokesperson Ashutosh Awana said.
He added that the operation of roadways buses would not be affected by the protest of transporters.
The police faced resistance by protesting truck drivers and locals in the Bandanwada area of Kekri district on Monday night when they tried to clear the road.
“The police had gone to clear a traffic jam on Ajmer-Bhilwara highway when the mob pelted stones at the police, leaving three policemen injured. A vehicle of Kekri city police station was also burnt,” Circle Officer Kekri Sanjay Singh said.
He said that additional policemen were deployed in the area and the road was cleared.
“Efforts are being made to identify those involved in the incident,” he said.
(With inputs from PTI)
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