Petrol dealers to protest on May 10, threaten to cut down working hours if demands not met

“If govt fails to meet our demands we will stop the 24x7 module and bring out shift timings.”
Petrol dealers to protest on May 10, threaten to cut down working hours if demands not met
Petrol dealers to protest on May 10, threaten to cut down working hours if demands not met
Written by:

Petrol bunks across the country will not buy fuel from the manufacturing companies on May 10. The All India petroleum Owners’ Association has called for a protest as the government has not met their demand of increasing the profit margin for petroleum dealers.

Bunk owners across the country have decided to go ahead with this move if the government does not meet their demand by May 9.

“Even after the May 10 protest, if the government does not meet our demand, then we will stop the round-the-clock service in petrol bunks and implement the 12-hour shift module. Either the petrol bunks will be open from 6am to 6pm or 9am to 9pm. The shift timings are not yet decided, but if the government fails to meet our demands we will stop the 24x7 module and bring out the shift timings,” said Karnataka Petroleum Owners’ Association President, Ravindranath.

He said that the dealer margin is so low that the workers in the petrol bunks are not getting paid adequately. Current profit margin for petroleum dealers is Rs 2.6 per litre of petrol and Rs 1.5 per litre of diesel.

Ravindranath says that the petroleum dealers across the country are facing huge losses. “The minimum amount paid for electricity in a petrol bunk per month is Rs 22,000. We have to pay the workers Rs 12,000 each and also provide them with two meals and a space to live in. By the time we deal with all the costs, there is nothing left for the dealers,” he added.

He says that many workers in petrol bunks across the country are reluctant to take up jobs as dealers have had to resort to cutting down their salaries.

“Who will work for Rs 8,000 per month these days? Petrol bunks and workers in these bunks are the only ones who work 365 days in a year without taking any off even for festivals. There is no concept of a weekly off and if we shut down for one day, then people outrage and get angry. If the government does not heed to our demands, then we will take weekly off, cut down the operation time to make up for the losses. That way, we will be able to pay our workers what they deserve,” he added.

Related Stories

No stories found.
The News Minute
www.thenewsminute.com