News Release Details
Put petrol pumps under check
New Delhi 20-Jul-2007
The Government has taken a number of measures to protect consumer rights. But a great scope for improvement remains in enforcement. Let's take the case of the Weights and Measures Act 1976 which inter alia contains provisions to put a check on short supply of petrol and diesel by petrol stations located in Delhi. The penal provisions for selling less than the quantity paid for are contained in Section 39(2) of the Standards of Weights and Measures (Enforcement), Act, 1985.The act prescribes penalty of Rs 5,000 for the first offence, though for subsequent offences imprisonment is prescribed. However, due to some loophole in Section 65 of the Act, offenders get away by just paying some penalty. The information sought under the RTI Act from the Weights and Measures Department of the NCT of Delhi has revealed many interesting detail. The NCT has over 400 petrol pumps. About 38 per cent, 70 per cent and 88 per cent of theses pumps were inspected for short supply measures in 2004, 2005 and 2006 respectively. In 2007, the percentage seems to have shot up, but it is not so. Only a single outlet at any pump is checked (most pumps have at least six outlets). A sizeable number of the pumps were found to be erring. In most cases, a penalty of Rs 5,000 was imposed for the first offence. For subsequent offences, the penalties ranged between Rs 15,000 to Rs 25,000. Further analysis shows that a pump is not checked even once in a year. And even when caught, the pump owner gets away by paying a modest penalty far less in proportion of the illegal profit earned by him and the loss to his consumers. Therefore, the laws relating to weights and measures, based on a prescribed formula, should take into account the illegal profits earned by the dealer since the last inspection. Prosecution for the subsequent offences should be made mandatory. The punishment must include suspension or cancellation of the errant pump-owner's dealership. Moreover, the prosecution should be through summary trials. All petrol pumps should be checked .at quarterly intervals. In addition, there should be surprise checks by teams headed by senior officers. The staff strength of the Weights and Measures Department also need to be substantially increased because the office has admitted that the low percentage of checks is due to the shortage of inspectorate staff.
New Delhi 20-Jul-2007
The Government has taken a number of measures to protect consumer rights. But a great scope for improvement remains in enforcement. Let's take the case of the Weights and Measures Act 1976 which inter alia contains provisions to put a check on short supply of petrol and diesel by petrol stations located in Delhi. The penal provisions for selling less than the quantity paid for are contained in Section 39(2) of the Standards of Weights and Measures (Enforcement), Act, 1985.The act prescribes penalty of Rs 5,000 for the first offence, though for subsequent offences imprisonment is prescribed. However, due to some loophole in Section 65 of the Act, offenders get away by just paying some penalty. The information sought under the RTI Act from the Weights and Measures Department of the NCT of Delhi has revealed many interesting detail. The NCT has over 400 petrol pumps. About 38 per cent, 70 per cent and 88 per cent of theses pumps were inspected for short supply measures in 2004, 2005 and 2006 respectively. In 2007, the percentage seems to have shot up, but it is not so. Only a single outlet at any pump is checked (most pumps have at least six outlets). A sizeable number of the pumps were found to be erring. In most cases, a penalty of Rs 5,000 was imposed for the first offence. For subsequent offences, the penalties ranged between Rs 15,000 to Rs 25,000. Further analysis shows that a pump is not checked even once in a year. And even when caught, the pump owner gets away by paying a modest penalty far less in proportion of the illegal profit earned by him and the loss to his consumers. Therefore, the laws relating to weights and measures, based on a prescribed formula, should take into account the illegal profits earned by the dealer since the last inspection. Prosecution for the subsequent offences should be made mandatory. The punishment must include suspension or cancellation of the errant pump-owner's dealership. Moreover, the prosecution should be through summary trials. All petrol pumps should be checked .at quarterly intervals. In addition, there should be surprise checks by teams headed by senior officers. The staff strength of the Weights and Measures Department also need to be substantially increased because the office has admitted that the low percentage of checks is due to the shortage of inspectorate staff.