Micro, small,and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) are facing significant challenges due to new procurement limits on high-speed diesel (HSD). The ceiling, set at 200 litres per day through a notification on June 11,falls short for many businesses that typically require between 200 and 600 litres daily. This restriction has been particularly burdensome for sectors such as manufacturing, healthcare,and education.
The president of the Coimbatore District Small Industries Association (CODISSIA) emphasized that many MSMEs lack the capacity for bulk purchasing and storage of diesel. Instead,they rely on daily or weekly purchases from local retail outlets . The government’s prohibition on industrial and commercial consumers buying diesel from these outlets has compounded the issue . “The current procurement ceiling is inadequate even for a single day,” he stated, highlighting the operational difficulties faced by these enterprises.
Many MSMEs operate in urban or industrial settings where space is limited, making it impractical to establish large,licensed storage facilities. The president urged the government to raise the procurement limit for verified institutional consumers . He proposed that registered MSMEs, hospitals,educational institutions, and other essential service providers be allowed to purchase up to 600 litres per day, contingent upon providing a GST registration certificate, factory licence,or Udyam registration certificate.
Furthermore,he suggested that small institutional users consuming between 200 and 600 litres daily should be permitted to buy diesel in safe transport containers without needing dedicated bulk storage . Implementing digital verification mechanisms by oil marketing companies could streamline this process. The president called on the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas to consider sector-specific exemptions to alleviate burden on MSMEs.
