Mumbai, May 25 (IANS) Amid ongoing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East impacting global supply chains, the government of Maharashtra and PSU Oil Marketing Companies (BPCL, IOCL, and HPCL), through the State Level Coordinator (Oil Industry), Maharashtra, Mihir Ganesh Joshi, on Monday, assured consumers that adequate petrol, diesel, and LPG stocks are available across Maharashtra.
Supply operations are being closely monitored and maintained without disruption.
The PSU Oil Marketing Companies assured that there are adequate stocks of petrol and diesel available at all petrol pumps and at the storage locations of oil companies across Maharashtra.
Stocks at petrol pumps are regularly monitored by the state government and oil companies, and replenished to ensure uninterrupted availability.
All three PSU Oil Marketing Companies have recently observed a sharp surge in demand for diesel and petrol at retail outlets across all districts in Maharashtra.
However, the increased demand has been fully met by the PSU oil companies.
“Citizens across Maharashtra have been requested not to resort to panic buying or hoarding of petroleum products. The Government of India, Government of Maharashtra, and PSU oil companies are ensuring proper and smooth supply of petroleum products across the state,” the government release said.
During the first three weeks of May 2026 (May 1, 2026, to May 21, 2026), a significant growth in fuel demand compared to the corresponding period last year was observed, with petrol demand increasing by 18.54 per cent and diesel demand by 22.3 per cent.
A total of 402 Thousand Kilo Litres (TKL) of petrol and 789 Thousand Kilo Litres (TKL) of diesel have been supplied across Maharashtra by the three PSU Oil Marketing Companies.
The PSU Oil Marketing Companies have witnessed significantly higher offtake of petroleum products driven by seasonal agricultural activity across multiple districts.
Additional demand pressure has also emerged due to the migration of private company retail customers to PSU retail outlets owing to lower prices, along with a visible shift of institutional and industrial consumers to retail fuel outlets because of an approximate price differential of Rs 30 per litre.
Consumers and farmers have been requested not to resort to panic buying, as sufficient stocks of petrol and diesel are available across the state.
Further, Maharashtra currently has approximately 31,789 MT of LPG stock available across all three PSU Oil Marketing Companies, while distributor stocks are being regularly replenished to ensure smooth supply.
Adequate domestic LPG cylinder stocks are available, and deliveries are continuing as per customer bookings.
To ensure equitable distribution, booking interval restrictions remain in place: 25 days for urban customers and 45 days for rural customers.
Oil companies have assured that LPG refills will continue to be delivered directly to customers’ residences, the release said.
Consumers have also been advised to use digital platforms for refill bookings and avoid visiting LPG showrooms unnecessarily.
At present, nearly 60 per cent of commercial LPG supply, as compared to the pre-war situation, is being met while ensuring 100 per cent supply to priority sectors such as hospitals, educational institutions, crematoriums, and social care institutions.
Considering the present supply emergency and the urgent need to expand piped natural gas infrastructure, the Government of Maharashtra issued deemed permission on March 27, 2026, for pending applications for laying CGD pipelines by municipal corporations, the PWD, the Irrigation Department, and other concerned authorities.
Maharashtra currently has approximately 44 lakh PNG connections, the highest in the country.
To expedite PNG network expansion across Maharashtra, the Government of Maharashtra has initiated fast-track expansion of the City Gas Distribution (CGD) network across the state.
From April 1, 2026, a total of 1,03,094 new PNG gas connections have been energised in Maharashtra, among the highest in the country.
–IANS
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