Petroleum dealers urge govt to curb smuggling of oil

Pakistan Petroleum Dealers Association (PPDA) has expressed concerns over decline in petrol and diesel sales citing abundance of smuggled Iranian oil in the country, 24 NewsHD TV channel reported. 

PPDA chairman Abdul Sami Khan said that smuggling of oil was on the rise but Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) and Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF) department were silent on the issue. 

He demanded new legislation to curb smuggling of petroleum products. 

PPDA member and petroleum dealer Tariq Hassan claimed Pakistan was losing 500 billion rupees every year because of petrol smuggling. 

Tariq Hassan also claimed smuggled petrol is bad for vehicles as low-quality fuel was damaging engines of the vehicles. 

During the meeting, PPDA member demanded that the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) and the Ministry of Petroleum to take immediate action against the petroleum smuggling. 

The petroleum dealers urged the government to take immediate and effective steps to curb smuggling. They also warn that continued negligence will deepen the crisis in the energy sector and damage public property.