Oil’s not well at HPCL depot in Bathinda

Oil’s not well at HPCL depot in Bathinda
Major pilferage detected; in-house probe begins; officials tight-lipped
Rajay Deep
Tribune News Service

Bathinda, July 4
With the recent detection of three illegally modified oil tankers, Moga police has reportedly emerged as a whistle-blower in exposing a major possible scam of pilferage of petroleum products in the Bathinda depot of the Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL).
The development forced HPCL to send an in-house vigilance team that camped here for three days (July 1, 2 and 3) to check official data and record the statements of the staff working here. The team inspected all vehicles entering its Bathinda depot, which caters to a large number of the state petro-stations.
If sources in the HPCL are to be believed, the development can expose a major nexus between some senior officials of the HPCL and the private tanker operators, which might have caused loss worth crores to the HPCL. Meanwhile, all HPCL officials have been directed to keep the media away to avoid unwanted publicity.
After a day-long investigation, this correspondent came to know that the matter came to light after the Moga police took up the matter with the HPCL authorities.
As per the details available, acting upon a tip-off, the CIA staff, Moga, intercepted an oil tanker (PB05F-9597) from Dharamkot on June 24 and found it to be illegally modified, having a ‘hidden’ storage chamber of hundreds of litres capacity, meant for pilfering fuel from the depot. Acting swiftly, police raided the tanker owner’s house in Vada Dahaka (Faridkot) and found two more tankers loaded with fuel, parked there.
The police arrested Yadwinder Singh, his son Rana Singh and a driver Prem Singh and sent them to judicial custody. Two trucks bearing numbers PB04C-9832 and PB04C-9816, loaded with 7000 and 1000 litres of fuel, respectively, were also taken into custody.
As the accused had been plying their trucks in the contract freight of the HPCL, Bathinda depot, police informed its officials, along with providing another list of various suspected tankers, believed to be pilfering fuel from the HPCL depot.
Since that day, on the orders of senior regional officials, an investigation was started at the Bathinda depot, during which five vehicles were traced to have illegal modifications.
Confirming the development, CIA staff of the Moga police informed that their team visited Bathinda depot about three days back, when they found four detected tankers parked there, bearing numbers as RJ 31GA-0566, PB 11D-4787, PB 05G- 9715 and one PB03S-7733, which after the modification, had got a fresh coat of paint.
“All this is an outcome of our active intelligence, as we provided a long list of such modified vehicles to the officials of the HPCL,” claimed Satnam Singh, in-charge of the CIA staff, Moga.
Suspecting a nexus prevailing at the Bathinda depot, Satnam Singh said, “During our visit to HPCL’s Bathinda depot, we were shocked to find that in such a huge oil depot, fuel was being calibrated with a manual system and the electronic digital meters were lying un-operational. We have sought many details from the depot officials, which we are yet to receive.”
It has also been informed that during the ongoing investigations, the chief of HPCL Bathinda depot, D.K.Gupta went on leave, which has also provided grist to rumour mills.
Some tanker drivers, awaiting their turn to get fuel, waiting outside the depot, said, “It was an usual practice here as mischievous elements, in connivance with depot officials, used to get ‘extra’ fuel filled in the hidden chamber and sold it in the market.”
When contacted, the officiating in-charge of HPCL, Bathinda depot, BS Dahia said, “I have no role in it. I can not utter a single word as it can go against my job.” But he confirmed the visit of vigilance sleuths and the number of detected tankers.
Senior regional manager of the HPCL, Amit Mehra, talking over the phone, parried the queries saying, “I do not have exact information as I am out of the state.”
Talking over the phone, chief manager, vigilance branch of the HPCL, Manoj Sharma, who led the inspection team here, said, “We have been carrying a detailed inspection. Till we record the statement the chief of Bathinda depot, D.K.Gupta, we can’t say anything.” He refused to comment further.