Mumbai, May 26 (IANS) Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Tuesday stated that there has been a significant increase in regional retail fuel consumption compared to typical seasonal patterns, highlighting that the state’s Food and Civil Supplies and Home Departments are jointly overseeing the supply and distribution pipelines.

The state has expanded petrol distribution by 23 per cent and diesel by 52 per cent to stabilise market demand, he said.

The CM stated that there seems to be hoarding of fuel, which is being monitored. He further added that there is also a possibility of diversion of fuel for commercial use, which is also being looked into.

Addressing the media after the weekly cabinet and accompanied by Deputy CM Eknath Shinde, CM Fadnavis said that specific regions are recording distinct surges, with Akola showing an increase of 154 per cent, and several districts, including Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Beed, Bhandara, Buldhana, Gondia, and Hingoli, reporting up to a 70 per cent climb in regular market consumption.

“The administration is analysing variations between commercial and retail fuel supply segments to verify that retail resources are effectively reaching agricultural and consumer lines,” he said.

The CM’s statement comes a day after the Maharashtra government and PSU Oil Marketing Companies (BPCL, IOCL, and HPCL), through the State Level Coordinator (Oil Industry), Maharashtra, Mihir Ganesh Joshi, on Monday, assured consumers that adequate petrol, diesel and LPG stocks are available across the state.

Supply operations are being closely monitored and maintained without disruption, they said. The PSU Oil Marketing Companies have assured that there are adequate stocks of petrol and diesel available at all petrol pumps as well as storage locations of Oil Companies across Maharashtra. Stocks at petrol pumps are being regularly monitored by the state government as well as Oil Companies and replenished to ensure uninterrupted availability.

On the present onion crisis, CM Fadnavis criticised the opposition for playing politics over the issues faced by the onion growers, saying that the state government is quite sensitive to address their concerns and help them in the present situation.

He announced that the Centre has convened a meeting on Wednesday to discuss the problems faced by the onion growers.

Addressing the ongoing crop concerns and agricultural storage adjustments, CM Fadnavis detailed recent collaborative market pricing structures. “The Central government has enhanced onion procurement support, increasing rates by Rs 3.5 to arrive at approximately Rs 15 per kg. The state government has requested a comprehensive review with central authorities, which is scheduled for tomorrow evening to evaluate long-term market intervention strategies and support systems for farmers,” he added.

He reiterated that the opposition is doing politics for photo ops on the issues faced by onion growers, saying that the state and Centre will take more steps to help them.

The onion belt of Maharashtra — primarily Nashik, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, and parts of Marathwada — is witnessing severe farm distress. Despite strong production, a convergence of adverse weather and geopolitical bottlenecks has caused wholesale prices to collapse to a fraction of production costs.

In several Agricultural Produce Market Committees (APMCs) like Satana, Lasalgaon, and Paithan, wholesale rates for lower-to-average quality onions crashed to between 50 paise and Re 1 per kg in early May. Premium quality stocks are securing only Rs 12 to Rs 15 per kg.

According to data from the State Agriculture Department, cultivation rose to 10 lakh hectares in the 2025-26 season, yielding a bumper 165-170 lakh metric tonnes. However, input costs (seeds, fertilisers, labour, and transport) average Rs 18 to Rs 20 per kg, leading to severe financial losses for cultivators.

–IANS

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