Lok Sabha Question No. 1856 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2016-11-28
Subject: Criteria for Allotment of Petrol Pumps/Gas Agencies
Ministry: PETROLEUM AND NATURAL GAS
Asked by: KAMLA DEVI PATLE

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1856 TO BE ANSWERED ON 28 th   NOVEMBER 2016

## CRITERIA FOR ALLOTMENT OF PETROL PUMPS/GAS AGENCIES

†1856. SHRIMATI KAMLA DEVI PAATLE:

## पेट्रोलियम एवं प्राक ृ लिक गैस मंत्री

Will the Minister of PETROLEUM AND NATURAL GAS be pleased to state:

- (a) the norms/criteria laid down by the Government for allotment of LPG agencies and petrol pumps in the country; and

(b)  whether  any  kind  of  reservation/  quota  has  been  prescribed  in  allotment  of  petrol pumps/gas  agencies  to  various  categories  of  people  in  the  country  and  if  so,  the  details thereof, category-wise?

## ANSWER

पेट्रोलियम एवं प्राक ृ लिक गैस मंत्रािय में राज्य मंत्री ( स्विंत्र प्रभार ) ( श्री धमेन्द्र प्रधान )

MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) IN THE MINISTRY OF PETROLEUM & NATURAL GAS (SHRI DHARMENDRA PRADHAN)

(a)  &  (b)  The  main  norms/criteria  laid  down  in  the  revised  guidelines,  namely,  Unified Guidelines for Selection of LPG Distributorships 2016,  are as under :-

- i. Applicant shall be an Indian citizen and be a resident of India.
- ii. Should  have  passed  minimum  Xth  standard  examination  or  equivalent  from  a recognised  Board.  The  criterion  of  educational  qualification  is  not  applicable  for applicant belonging to Freedom Fighter (FF) category.
- iii. Applicant shall be of 21 years and not more than 60 years in age as on the date of advertisement.
- iv. There is no age restriction for  applicants  applying for  locations  reserved  under  FF category.
- v. Shall not be a family member of employee of OMC as on date of application.
- vi. Shall fulfil Multiple Dealership/Distributorship norms.
- vii. Shall  not  be  a  signatory  to  distributorship/dealerships  agreement,  terminated  on account of proven cases of malpractices/adulteration.
- viii. Shall Own a plot of land of minimum dimensions for construction of LPG godown or Own a ready LPG cylinder  storage  godown  as  on  the  last  date  for  submission  of application.

The detailed guidelines namely 'Unified Guidelines for Selection of LPG Distributorships' is available on the website http://www.petroleum.nic.in

The  main  features  of  norms  and  criteria  prescribed  for  allotment  of  Petrol  Pumps operated  by  Public  Sector  Oil  Marketing  Companies  (OMCs)  in  the  country  are  given  in Annexure . The detailed guidelines in this regard are available on the respective websites of the OMCs.

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## Annexure referred to in reply to part (a) of LOK Sabha Unstarred Question No. 1856 by Shrimati Kamla Devi Paatle regarding 'Criteria for Allotment of Petrol Pumps/Gas Agencies'

## Norms/Criteria/Reservation Policy for Dealership Selection Guidelines

Dealer Selection by draw of lots / bidding have been implemented for opening of new Retail  Outlets  in  rural  as  well  as  urban  areas.  There  is  neither  marks-based  evaluation system  nor  interview  process  for  selection.  The  selection  is  carried  out  by  a  transparent system  of  draw  of  lots/Bidding.  Individuals  and  Non-  Individuals  can  apply.  All  applicants meeting the  eligibility  criteria  qualify  for  the  draw/bidding.  As  per  the  eligibility  criteria,  an applicant  has  to  meet  the  minimum  requirements  on  availability  of  suitable  land  at  the advertised location, Finance, Age and Educational Qualification. However, for Corpus fund locations, Finance is not an eligibility criterion.  All  categories  of  applicants  are  required to have suitable piece of land in the advertised location/area either by way of ownership / long term lease.

The detailed guidelines for selection of retail outlet dealerships which have come into effect from 21-05-2014 have provision for 22.5 percent reservation for SC/STs in allotment of retail  outlet  dealerships.  However,  distribution  between  Scheduled  Castes  (SCs)  and Scheduled Tribes (STs) will  vary in each State depending upon the ratio of SC/ST in the State as per latest available census data.

Adhering  to  the  broad  reservation  principles  under  the  constitutional  scheme  27% reservation for OBC category has been introduced. Reservation for SC/ST is 22.5% and the remaining  50.5%  is  for  Open  category.  Sub  categories  of  reservation  among  the  Main categories  i.e.  SC/ST,  OBC  &  Open  categories  have  been  introduced  to  take  care  of reservation for Defence personnel, Para Military Personnel/Central/State Govt. and Central/State  PSU  employees,  Physically  Handicapped  personnel,  Outstanding  Sports Persons and Freedom Fighters. Able bodied Ex servicemen are  also made eligible under reservation for Defence personnel to enlarge the scope for Defence category.

Reservation  for  various  categories  in  all  the  States  except  Arunachal  Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Mizoram are as under :-

| Category                                                                                                                                               | SC/ST   | OBC   | Open   | Total   |
|--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|---------|-------|--------|---------|
| Combined Category 1 (CC1) Comprising of :- (i) Defence Personnel & (ii) Para Military Personnel/Central/State Govt. and Central/State PSU employees    | 2%      | 2%    | 4%     | 8%      |
| Combined Category 2 (CC2) Comprising of :- (i) Physically Handicapped Persons (PH) (ii) Outstanding Sports Persons (OSP) & (iii) Freedom Fighters (FF) | 1%      | 1%    | 2%     | 4%      |
| SC/ST                                                                                                                                                  | 19.50%  |       |        | 19.50%  |
| OBC                                                                                                                                                    |         | 24%   |        | 24%     |
| Open                                                                                                                                                   |         |       | 44.50% | 44.50%  |
| Total                                                                                                                                                  | 22.50%  | 27%   | 50.50% | 100%    |

Reservations  in  some  North  Eastern  States  of    Arunachal  Pradesh,  Meghalaya, Nagaland and Mizoram would continue to be as under as approved by MOP & NG earlier: -

| State             | Percentage of Regular & Rural RO Dealerships to be awarded to ST category   | Balance % to be awarded to 'Open' category   |
|-------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------|----------------------------------------------|
| Arunachal Pradesh | 70                                                                          | 30                                           |
| 80                | 20                                                                          | Meghalaya                                    |
| 80                |                                                                             | Nagaland 20                                  |
| Mizoram           | 90                                                                          | 10                                           |

No separate reservation for Women category has been made in the New Guidelines. However, in case of individual applicants, spouse will be made a partner up to a share of maximum 50% unless the spouse is already gainfully employed and/or do not wish to be made a partner in order not to dilute the financial and social status of women.

Draw of Lots / Bidding process:

In  the  Draw  of  Lots  /  Bidding  process,  priority  will  be  given  to  applicants  with  regard  to ownership of land as mentioned below:

Group 1: Applicants having suitable piece of land in the advertised location/area either by way of ownership / long term lease including in all reserved categories.

Group 2: Applicants having Firm offer of purchase or long term lease for a piece of suitable land including in all reserved categories.

Draw of lots /  Opening of  Bids  will  be  held  first  amongst  the  eligible  applicants  with  land falling in Group 1.

Draw of lots amongst eligible applicants of Group - 2 will be held only if there is no applicant in Group 1 or applicants in Group 1 have been disqualified or withdrawn.

The entire proceedings of the draw/bidding will be video graphed in one shot.

The result of the draw will be displayed on the notice board of the venue immediately and at Company office. It will also be hosted on the website of the Company.

All  of  the  above  are  common  for  allotment  of  Regular  and  Rural  category  of  ROs.  The Parameters which are different for Regular and Rural category of ROs are as under:

| Parameter                         | Applicability                                          | Regular RO                                                                                                                                                                                                     | Rural RO                                                                                                                                                                                                       |
|-----------------------------------|--------------------------------------------------------|----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Non-Refundable Application Fee    | All                                                    | Rs. 1000/- (SC/ST - Rs.500/-)                                                                                                                                                                                  | Rs. 100/- (SC/ST - Rs.50/-)                                                                                                                                                                                    |
| Advertised location               | All                                                    | In any class of market i.e. Urban / Highway                                                                                                                                                                    | Except on NH / SH                                                                                                                                                                                              |
| Non-refundable Minimum Bid Amount | A- Site RO (except SC/ST category locations under CFS) | Rs. 30.0 Lac {Initial Down Payment (IDP) - 1.5 Lacs}                                                                                                                                                           | Rs. 10.0 Lacs {Initial Down Payment (IDP) - 0.5 Lacs}                                                                                                                                                          |
| Non-Refundable Fixed Fee          | B- Site RO                                             | Rs. 15.0 Lacs                                                                                                                                                                                                  | Rs. 5.0 Lacs                                                                                                                                                                                                   |
| Refundable Security Deposit       | All                                                    | Rs. 5.0 Lacs                                                                                                                                                                                                   | 0.5 Lacs                                                                                                                                                                                                       |
| Nationality / Residency criteria  | All                                                    | Should be Indian Citizen and Resident of India as per Income tax rules.                                                                                                                                        | Should be Indian Citizen and Resident of India as per Income tax rules. For Rural ROs the applicant has to be residing in the district of the advertised location.                                             |
| Educational Qualifications        | All                                                    | Minimum 10th pass (examination conducted by a Board /School) for all categories except Freedom Fighter category. Freedom fighter category will be exempted from minimum educational qualification requirement. | Minimum 10th pass (examination conducted by a Board /School) for all categories except Freedom Fighter category. Freedom fighter category will be exempted from minimum educational qualification requirement. |