The imposition of the Petroleum Differential Levy (PDL) on high speed diesel on oil companies may result in a shortage of diesel in the country, warned Executive Director, Logistics Group, Shaikh Mohammad Sadiq here on Tuesday.
He said, "There is a shortage of diesel across the country, which is the result of an ill-advised official policy to levy a hefty PDL on high speed diesel on the oil companies. Levy on high speed diesel started from Rs 6, which has galloped to an astronomical level of Rs 27/50 per litre. It is reportedly causing loss of Rs 3.45 per litre for oil companies.
Consequently, the oil companies, notably a few leading suppliers, like Shell, are now releasing limited supply of diesel to the dealers-much lesser than its demand," he added. He said a string of weighing stations by the National Highway Authorities (NHA) had mostly been set up in the central Punjab belt. "Sindh, Balochistan and the NWFP remain largely free from these checks to give a free hand to transporters in those regions to indulge in all sorts of irregularities. This issue needs to be urgently addressed," he added.