A faction of Bangladesh Petrol Pump Owners Association went on strike, halting oil transportation from the depot on Sunday. While some pumps sold oil in the morning, they ran out by noon, leading to sales closures.
If the strike continues into Monday, there is a risk of all pumps shutting down.
The demands of the association include setting the sales commission of fuel oil at 7.50%, publishing gazette recognizing petrol pump owners as commission agents, clearing announcement through gazette notification that value added tax (VAT) would not be applicable on the fares of tank-lorries and also gazette notification fixing the economic life of tank lorries which are over 25 years old.
The Ministry of Power Energy and Mineral Resources granted them commission agent status. However, since the other demands were not met, they have continued their strike.
Ramna petrol station ran out of oil, leading to a halt in oil sales. While many pumps had oil in the morning, they ran out by the afternoon.
Bangladesh Tank-Lorry Workers Federation General Secretary (Dhaka) Rezaul Karim Reza said: “No oil was extracted on Sunday and no one even had a meeting with them.”
Petrol Pump Owners Association General Secretary Mizanur Rahman Ratan said: “One side is negotiating. But their numbers are few. There is no point in keeping the pump open. Oil extraction is off. The strike will continue till the demands are met.”
On Tuesday, State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid presided over a meeting in the presence of leaders of Bangladesh Tank-Lorry Owners Association and Bangladesh Tank-Lorry Workers Federation.
In the meeting, the petrol pump owners were assured to implement the decision to meet all their demands by September 30, 2023.
After this, some people called off the strike. However, another section said the authorities were only wasting time by not implementing their long-standing demands. Therefore, from Sunday, they have stopped oil extraction and transportation indefinitely and are on strike.
