Shree Brothers, Baneshwor; and DM Oil Store, Naikap; Madhyapur Oil Suppliers operated by Sajha Bhandar, Gatthaghar; Shanti Oil Store and Bhaktapur Fuel Centre, Bhaktapur; were found overcharging  customers during the a joint inspection on Wednesday.

A team of representatives from the department and Nepal Oil Corporation, and consumers’ rights activists had conducted the inspection.

Bhaktapur Fuel Centre was found charging Rs 133.25 per litre of petrol and Rs 105.25 per litre of diesel. The actual rates are Rs 133.06 and Rs 105.23, respectively. Others were found not returning change to customers.

DoCSM Director Purushottam Subedi said the department would send a letter to the District Administration Office for taking necessary action against the pumps. According to NOC, pumps overcharging customers is a legal offence. “If proven guilty, we will close the pumps for three months,” said NOC Spokesperson Mukunda Ghimire.

Based on complaints from consumers, the Ministry of Commerce and Supply (MoCS) had directed the Commerce Department to initiate the inspection. “We have received a number of complaints regarding the anomalies,” said the MoCS Spokesperson Deepak Subedi.