Their wrongdoing was found when a team of market inspectors from Department of Commerce (DoC), NOC and consumers representatives carried out inspection of the refilling stations.[break]
"The inspection found Kamakhya Oil Store of selling 12,000 liters of diesel supplied to it from Amlekhgunj to Modi hydropower project in Tanahun, instead of bringing it to its pump for retailing," said Mukunda Dhungel, spokesperson of NOC.
Going by the NOC´s Dealers Regulation, dealers need to sell petroleum products from their pumps installed within the premises approved by NOC. NOC has stopped supplying diesel -- only product that the pump was selling -- to Kamkhya Oil Store for the past three days, said Dhungel.
He told Republica that NOC has also sought written clarification from the pump for its action. "It will not receive supply until further decision," he added.
NOC also took similar action against Modern Amenity Petrol Pump after officials of the Banepa-based pump refused to disclose details of its operations to the market inspectors.
“We had asked them to provide details of their sales, but they refused to cooperate,” said Kamalbahadur Thapa, market inspector at DoC.
Though NOC records show that the pump was receiving fuel at regular interval, locals have complained that the pump not selling fuel. The inspection team has charged the pump of creating artificial scarcity and had asked NOC to take action against it.
“Supply to Modern Amenity too will be halted until further decision," said Dhungel.
Meanwhile, promoters of both the petrol pumps have denied wrongdoing. Basudev Dahal, owner of Kamakhya Oil Store, said he sold diesel to Modi Hydropower Project as per the provision of the regulations which allows petrol pumps to make bulk sales to any party. Similarly, promoters of Modern Amenity have claimed that they shut the pump because it had run out of stock.
In the wake of fuel scarcity, DoC had recently teamed up with NOC and consumers representatives to intensify investigation against possible irregularities by the petrol pumps. It has already inspected over 200 petrol pumps in the capital.
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