Old image of queue at filling station passed off as rush before fuel price hike
Petrol and diesel prices are likely to be hiked in the country. Crude oil prices have hit $ 139 a barrel following the Russia-Ukraine war. Fuel prices in India are likely to be hiked by Rs 15-22 per liter.
By Newsmeter Network Published on 11 March 2022 2:19 AM GMT
HYDERABAD: Petrol and diesel prices are likely to be hiked in the country. Crude oil prices have hit $ 139 a barrel following the Russia-Ukraine war. Fuel prices in India are likely to be hiked by Rs 15-22 per liter.
A picture of a large crowd in a queue at a petrol pump is circulating on Whatsapp. Users claim that people fill up their vehicles before the price hike.
"The rush at the petrol pumps last night is a testament to the confidence people have in their ruler ... !! Jai Modiji. Look for people filling up with petrol and diesel on the line before tackling the price hike," reads the English translation of the text.
FACT CHECK:
NewsMeter performed a reverse image search and found the same picture in a February 2022 report by News 18 Kanada that talks of the petrol rates in various districts of Karnataka. The same picture was also carried by Financial Express in 2017. It talked about petrol, diesel pumps going on a day-long strike on October 13, 2017. The picture was used as a representative image in both these reports.
Another search led to a 2012 news report by the First Post. The report states that the picture was taken in May 2012 in Ahmedabad when petrol prices were hiked in major cities across the country. The picture shows the public rushing to petrol pumps to get their hands on that last drop of cheap petrol. The picture is captioned, "The land of bikes: Motorcyclists in Ahmedabad crowd into a petrol pump after the hike was announced."
As the picture has been available on the internet since 2012, it is not related to the current fuel price hike. This picture was taken in 2012 in Ahmedabad and does not reflect the current situation. Thus, the claim is false
