BAD KARMA AFFECTS EVEN THE GOVERNMENT

Who said that the doctrine of Karma affects only individuals? Right now the Public Sector cartel of government owned Oil companies (PSUs) are seeing a shut down in their operations due to a nationwide strike by their nearly 40,000 officers demanding an overdue legitimate and earlier committed salary and perks hike by the government. It has also badly hit all forms of transport that run on petroleum products on land, sea or air. The highly unionized staffs even though not involved in the present fracas are relishing the situation and extending tacit support to this movement as it will be their turn next to have their own emoluments increased for catching up with that of the officers as it exists now.

The previous NDA government had started the open market regime for petrol/diesel retail prices which reflected the ups and downs of international crude oil prices. The present "populist" UPA government supposedly headed by a world renowned economist had fallen into the anti-market Marxist trap of removing this universally followed proven practice which even poor countries like Pakistan and Bangladesh follow. To make matters even worse this government has removed the earlier committed "level playing field" in the petrol/diesel retail prices by giving their own PSU oil companies huge subsidies to keep prices artificially down to reduce their losses still being incurred that had resulted in private players like Reliance, Essar and Shell shutting shop as they were unable to market their products without huge losses by matching PSU prices minus government subsidies. Their joint complaint is gathering dust with the Petroleum Regulatory Authority set up by the government for correcting such irregularities.

These companies can move court as they have a very strong case in their favour but the repercussions could be detrimental with government reprisals. On earlier occasions whenever the PSU Oil officers or workers went on strike these private players being unaffected kept their pumps open as their officers/workers had no unions to start with. Further, the dealers/operators of these Private Oil companies were not members of the strike hungry Petroleum Dealers' Associations either. Had this myopic government kept the "level playing field" intact this current situation would never have arisen.

It is also a fact that thousands of pump/gas dealerships of PSUs are owned by past/present Ministers/MPs/MLAs who rake in huge unaccounted for profits through selling adulterated and short delivered fuels to the luckless vehicle owners which is simply not possible to be done at any private oil company’s fuel outlets as they are desperate to increase market share through world class service and quickly recover their huge investments in a competitive environment.