Minister says no fuel crisis; Rumeen questions long queues

Online Desk  : Energy, Power and Mineral Resources Minister Iqbal Hasan Mahmud has said that there is no fuel oil crisis in the country. However, he added that an artificial crisis is being created at filling stations due to illegal stockpiling and black-market activities by some dishonest traders. The minister made these remarks on Sunday (April 19) in the Jatiya Sangsad (National Parliament) in response to a question from Netrokona-5 lawmaker Mashum Mostafa. In his question, the MP alleged that although the government claims there is no crisis, the reality is different. He said customers are not being given fuel...

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Online Desk  : Energy, Power and Mineral Resources Minister Iqbal Hasan Mahmud has said that there is no fuel oil crisis in the country. However, he added that an artificial crisis is being created at filling stations due to illegal stockpiling and black-market activities by some dishonest traders. The minister made these remarks on Sunday (April 19) in the Jatiya Sangsad (National Parliament) in response to a question from Netrokona-5 lawmaker Mashum Mostafa.

In his question, the MP alleged that although the government claims there is no crisis, the reality is different. He said customers are not being given fuel worth more than Tk 200 at stations, and that special markings are being used on motorcycles to prevent refueling. In response, Iqbal Hasan said that, as the minister for Foreign Affairs rightly noted, there is no fuel crisis in the country. He stated that the supply of fuel oil in March this year is equal to that of March last year.

He added that an artificial crisis has been created due to illegal stockpiling and black marketing by a section of dishonest traders. Panic buying among consumers has also intensified the situation. He further clarified that there is no government instruction regarding limiting fuel supply to motorcycles or marking them with paint at filling stations. Raising the issue, Brahmanbaria-2 MP Barrister Rumeen Farhana said that people are seen standing in long queues until midnight but still cannot get fuel, yet the government appears unconcerned.

She remarked that fuel prices were eventually increased, adding a rhetorical comment questioning the ministers’ claims that there is no crisis. She asked that if there is no fuel crisis, why there are three-kilometre-long queues at filling stations. Raising further questions in Parliament, she said that when ministers speak, it appears there is no crisis in the country. She urged the government to clarify how many days’ worth of octane, petrol, and diesel reserves are available, how long they can last, and why stations are not receiving adequate fuel supplies.