West Bengal government has relaxed its recently imposed restrictions on the purchase of diesel in containers and barrels, offering significant relief to farmers, hospitals, and emergency service providers who had been facing operational difficulties. Announcing the decision, Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Sunday announced the government acted swiftly to ensure that essential services and the state’s economy are not disrupted.
“Our government is always committed to ensuring that the daily lives of the common people, emergency services, and the state’s economy proceed smoothly without any hindrance,” he said in a social media post.
The restrictions, introduced earlier to curb the misuse and black-marketing of fuel, had inadvertently impacted key sectors dependent on diesel for daily operations. Acknowledging these challenges, the government issued a fresh directive through the Food and Supplies Department, communicating the changes to major oil companies including Indian Oil Corporation, Hindustan Petroleum, and Bharat Petroleum.
Under the revised order, critical sectors such as healthcare, agriculture, emergency response, and essential services have been exempted from the earlier restrictions. Hospitals and health clinics will now be able to procure diesel freely for power backup systems, while vehicles operated by police, fire services and disaster management authorities will continue functioning without interruption.
The relaxation is also expected to benefit farmers engaged in harvesting and tilling activities, along with dairy and poultry farms, cold storage units and food processing operations. Tea garden factories and associated transport infrastructure—key components of the state’s agri-economy—have also been brought under the exemption.
In addition, the government has eased the daily cap on diesel purchases for these sectors and permitted fuel stations to supply diesel in containers or barrels instead of restricting sales to vehicle tanks.
Officials clarified that while the curbs have been lifted for essential users, safeguards remain in place to prevent misuse. Customers availing of the exemption will be required to present basic identification or relevant documentation, such as institutional identity cards, trade licenses, land records or official requisitions.
Authorities have also directed fuel pump operators to ensure that eligible customers do not face harassment while purchasing diesel under the new guidelines.
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