Fuel Panic Grips Nagpur As Over 24 Petrol Pumps Run Dry, City Crawls Amid Chaos | Nagpur News
Nagpur: The city woke up to mounting anxiety on Tuesday morning after rumours of petrol shortage, which had been gathering pace since Monday night, triggered panic buying, leading to long queues, dry pumps, and widespread disruption across the city. At least 24 petrol pumps across Nagpur and its outskirts ran dry and were forced to shut operations, as a worsening fuel crunch — driven by rapidly depleting stocks and fears linked to the West Asia conflict — left motorists scrambling for fuel.As the day passed, many fuel stations downed shutters. Outlets in Wadi, Rameshwari area, near CID office, and in Godhani were among those forced to shut after running dry.Sources in the district administration said fuel tankers did not arrive in the city over the weekend. “Fresh supplies are expected to normalise in coming days,” said sources. The recent decision of oil companies to stop credit supplies to petrol pump dealers further aggravated the situation.Few pumps still operational turned into pressure points, where swelling crowds, blaring horns, and snaking queues spilled onto main roads. At multiple locations, vehicles lined up for hours at pumps, reducing arterial roads into bottlenecks. At RBI Square petrol pump, the queue extended as far as Kingsway Hospital. Traffic snarls were reported across key stretches, including Wardha Road, Amravati Road, Sitabuldi, Sadar, and other parts of the city as motorists waited endlessly under the harsh sun, engines switched off, inching forward in hope rather than certainty.Jay Pardhi, who managed to refuel his vehicle on North Ambazari Road, said he waited nearly 45 minutes. “I was on my way home when my parents called and asked me to get a full tank. I rushed to the petrol station and filled ‘Power’ petrol at around ₹113 per litre,” he said.Pardhi was among scores of motorists opting for full-tank refuelling amid panic. In several cases, motorists, after waiting for hours, were left with no option but to opt for the costlier premium fuel or return empty-handed.Pump staff were left firefighting the chaos, scrambling to impose order. Temporary queues were set up to separate two-wheelers and four-wheelers, but with patience wearing thin, tempers flared. Frequent attempts to jump the line triggered heated arguments and occasional scuffles.Mahesh Barapatre, waiting near Gandhi Sagar Lake, described the ordeal as exhausting. “The constant honking and waiting, it has been nearly an hour. Whether this is panic buying or an actual shortage, the reality is we are not getting petrol, which feels as essential as roti, kapda aur makan,” he said.Adding to the distress, several commuters reported abandoning queues midway due to uncertainty over availability. By evening, while some pumps reported partial replenishment, long queues persisted, and uncertainty loomed large.
