Long queues have once again formed at petrol stations across the capital, as uncertainty over fuel supply has triggered concern among private vehicle owners, motorcyclists and public transport operators.
Stakeholders say the disruption stems from complications in supply management and allocation procedures.
On Friday and Saturday, long lines of vehicles were seen at multiple petrol pumps in Dhaka as drivers waited for fuel. Concerned parties warn that if the issue is not resolved swiftly, public inconvenience could worsen after the upcoming Eid holidays.
Sources said that following fuel supply instability during the Iran conflict period, authorities have been operating distribution under heightened caution. At present, depots allocate specific quotas to each petrol station, after which station owners must complete payments through bank pay orders to collect fuel.
Petrol station owners have complained that delays in receiving allocation notices are slowing down the entire process, disrupting regular supply. By Saturday morning, several stations in the capital reportedly ran out of fuel stock.
It has also been learned that due to the Eid holiday schedule, banks remained open on Saturday. As a result, depot authorities did not issue advance allocations covering two days at once. Once allocations were released in the morning, banking procedures took until late in the day to complete, further delaying fuel dispatch from depots.
Nazmul Haque, general secretary of a faction of the Petrol Pump Owners’ Association, said that as banks were open on Saturday, advance allocations were not issued from depots on Thursday.
He added that after allocations were received in the morning, it took until midday to complete banking procedures, while additional time was required for fuel tankers to be dispatched from depots.
He further said that fuel supply to his own petrol pump had also been temporarily disrupted due to the issue. He added that banks will remain closed for five days during Eid, and if fuel is supplied under the same procedure during that period, public inconvenience could increase significantly.