Maharashtra govt wakes up; starts fuel quality checks at pumps

Following Yashwant Sonawane’s killing, authorities have finally woken up to the widespread menace of the oil mafia.

On Thursday, they began checking the density of petrol and diesel at petrol pumps in and around Nashik. Along with raids throughout the state, checking was intensified in Nashik, Manmad, Dhule and other places in north Maharashtra.

For a long time, north Maharashtra has been known as a hub for the oil and naphtha mafias. Dhule, Nandurbar, Jalgaon and Manmad have emerged as the main centres of these activities.

Given the proximity of north Maharashtra to Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat, the mafia has consolidated its operations there. This part of the state has a high density of both freight and passengers on the roads. Tankers plying from the refinery hubs in Gujarat pass through eastern and central Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pradesh.

Malegaon is situated just off the node on the Mumbai-Agra national highway 3 at a point which also leads to Manmad, Dhule, Indore and Surat. Instances of raids in the past point to how tankers offload part of their contents in the deep ravines of the hilly region where the smuggled crude and fuel is called “black gold.”

Manmad is home to the largest oil depot in the continent with all major oil companies storing kerosene, petrol and diesel here. Oil comes here through direct pipelines from supply stations and is distributed using tankers which are pilfered with ease. While it is predominantly kerosene meant for the PDS which is used as an adulterant, chemicals like naphtha are also used.

Professor Mahesh Shelar of the KK Wagh Engineering College, Nashik, said: “Petrol and diesel cost much more than kerosene. If the government stops subsidising kerosene, the issue of diesel adulteration will be resolved. Instead of a subsidy, the government can think of giving the poor a cash transfer.”