TEAM HERALD
PANJIM: When the going got tough, the tough got going by cutting off fuel supplies to the vehicles at three police stations in the State.
With petrol pump operators refusing to supply fuel to the police stations at Mapusa, Ponda and Bicholim due to huge pending bills, police vehicles were forced to remain idle at these stations. Left with no option, the police department assured that the pending bills would be released to all three petrol pumps within the next few days and following these assurances, fuel was recently released to the stranded police vehicles.
Police vehicles at the police stations in Ponda, Mapusa and Bicholim had been lying idle due to an acute fuel shortage, after petrol pumps had reportedly stopped supplying fuel to these police vehicles due to non-payment of bills.
In Ponda, five Police Robot vans and six two-wheelers of the Ponda Police Station had been lying idle due to an acute fuel shortage, after a petrol pump at Curti-Ponda had not been paid for nearly six months and the pending bills had reportedly touched a staggering Rs 6 lakh.
“With the police vehicles stranded for want of fuel, police teams could never reach the site of the crime or accident in quick time. We were also unable to undertake night patrolling and this could easily have led to a law and order situation,” said a source at the Ponda police station.
Following an assurance that the pending payments would be released later this week, the pump resumed fuel supply to the Ponda station.
The situation was no different at the Bicholim police station, when pending fuel bills of about Rs 6 lakh prompted the petrol pump owner to stop further fuel supplies.
“The fuel supply was resumed to the vehicles at the Bicholim police station after the petrol pump owner was assured that his dues would be cleared this week,” said a source at the Bicholim police station.
In a similar incident at the Mapusa police station, a petrol pump at Mapusa had stopped filling petrol and diesel to the vehicles of Mapusa Police station last month after bills to the tune of Rs 7 lakh were not cleared by the Police department. As a result, around eight vehicles were lying idle in the garage.
The petrol pump owner had also written a letter to the police inspector in this connection.
“Concerned that police vehicles had come to a standstill for want of petrol and diesel, the police department assured to release the payment to the petrol pump owner at Mapusa,” said a source at the Mapusa police station.
When contacted, SP (PHQ) Vishram Borkar said: “The matter has been sorted out.” Sources said the department has assured making the payment this week. It is also learnt that the police vehicles from the three police stations, were supplied fuel during the first three days from the Panjim PHQ petrol pump.
According to sources, the police department follows a standard procedure. “The individual police stations send the petrol bills to the DGP’s office and from there, it is then sent to the directorate of accounts to release the payments. The directorate of accounts also has its own procedures and does not accept bills submitted after 20th of the month,” said a police source.
