Minister of Food and Civil Supplies and Consumer Welfare Surjya Narayan Patro on Friday said raids would be conducted in all petrol pumps of the State to check fuel theft by using electronic chips.
Patro said the raids would be carried out in cooperation with the oil marketing company officials. This development came after the Union Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas in a letter to the Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare Department and the Odisha DGP informed that as many as 90 petrol pumps in Odisha had used electronic chips to pilfer fuel.
This was revealed after an after an accused Dambarudhar lalman Mohanto was arrested in September. He confessed to the investigating agency that on the request of petrol pump owners ‘tampered equipments’ were replaced with normal ones in nearly 90 places in Odisha after the scam on the use of electronic chips for fuel theft surfaced in UP and subsequently raids were carried out.
After the scam came to light, the State Government had conducted raids in some petrol pumps in the city and other parts of the State after the scam came to limelight. The State Government had conducted raids in some petrol pumps in the city and other parts of the State but they claimed that no irregularities were found.
However, Indian Oil Corporation limited Odisha head Pritish Bharat said it is the responsibility of the State Weights and Measures Department to check fuel pilferage and tampering of oil dispensing machines.