Srinagar: Authorities in Kashmir on Tuesday ordered rationing of petrol and diesel for vehicles to overcome any shortage of fuel due to closure of Jammu-Srinagar National Highway amid heavy snowfall.
According to the order issued by Kashmir Divisional Commissioner P K Pole, buses, trucks and commercial vehicles will get a maximum of 20 litres, while private vehicles (four wheelers) will get only 10 litres.
Three wheelers will get five litres of fuel while two wheelers will get only three litres.
The administration has also put a cap of 21 days on refill for LPG cylinders.
The tehsildars and tehsil supply officers concerned were directed to ensure implementation of the orders while line departments were instructed to crack whip on those indulging in malpractices like overcharging, black marketing or profiteering.
Reacting sharply to the government order, Apni Party president Syed Mohammad Altaf Bukhari on Tuesday decried the preparedness of the administration that was caught napping in the wake of fresh snowfall across Kashmir Division.
“Not to talk about snow clearance on roads or ensuring smooth supply of water and electricity; the administration has now debunked its own claims by ordering rationing of fuel across Kashmir division,” Bukhari observed.
He said the order may be precautionary in nature but the divisional administration has created scare among people and raised a big question mark on its stock positions for tackling the winter exigencies in Kashmir.
“Snowfall is nothing new to Kashmir. But we have always witnessed that a few inches of snow buries tall claims of the administration that always boasts about its advanced preparations before the advancement of winters,” Bukhari remarked, while expressing deep concern over the plight of people in snowbound areas which are cut-off from the main town across Kashmir division.
