NEW DELHI: The LPG supply woes continue to pose hardships to the public as well as impacting hotels, businesses and household consumers through longer waiting periods and panic bookings. The Centre has asked states to expedite approvals for piped gas projects to enable faster rollout and ease pressure on cooking gas availability.
Officials stated that LPG supply continues to be closely monitored amid the ongoing geopolitical situation, during an inter-ministerial briefing. No shortages have been reported at LPG distributorships. Domestic LPG production from refineries has increased by around 38 per cent, and online bookings have risen to approximately 94 per cent.
The Delivery Authentication Code coverage has expanded from 53 per cent before the crisis to about 76 per cent to prevent diversion. Domestic cylinder deliveries are proceeding normally. Several States and Union Territories, including Bihar, Delhi, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Manipur, Rajasthan, and Uttarakhand, have issued orders for non-domestic LPG allocation as per government guidelines, ensuring commercial LPG supply across the country.
As the war in West Asia, which blocked India’s access to almost 60 per cent of its LPG, continues with no end in sight, the government is now pushing for the use of alternative cooking mediums like induction cookers.
“Situation remains a matter of concern, but we are providing supplies as before to the domestic consumers,” said Sujata Sharma, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas.
This was made possible as refineries were asked to ramp up domestic output, which was then prioritised for household kitchens. Commercial use of LPG, such as in hotels and restaurants, was initially curtailed, but later restored to a fifth of their normal offtake. “We have to look at alternatives,” she said at a media briefing.
She said panic bookings for a refill LPG cylinder peaked to 87.7 lakh on March 13, but have since eased, with about 70 lakh bookings being done on Monday. This compares to about 55 lakh bookings in pre-war days.
LPG deliveries have kept pace. “We delivered 62.5 lakh cylinders on March 13 then 60 lakh on March 14 this compares to 50 lakh deliveries in pre-conflict times,” she said. There is still panic booking happening despite assurances that there are enough LPG supplies to meet household needs, she said. To ease pressure on LPG, the government is promoting commercial and household LPG users to switch to piped natural gas. City gas companies are offering incentives and faster connections.
The government is also expanding the city gas distribution network to ease pressure on LPG demand, Sharma said. The Centre has, on March 16, written to all state governments to expedite approvals for city gas projects. It asked them to issue deemed permission for pending applications for large city gas pipelines, approvals for new city gas projects within 24 hours, waive road restoration charges, and relax working schedules.
India’s LPG supplies came under strain as the Strait of Hormuz - a key route for imports - faces disruptions following the US and Israel attack on Iran and Tehran’s sweeping retaliation.
With shipments from major suppliers, such as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, affected, India, which imports about 60 per cent of its LPG needs, has moved to ration supplies. The government has curtailed allocation to commercial users and industries to prioritise household consumption and prevent an immediate shortage of cooking gas.
The disruption has begun to ripple through several sectors that rely heavily on LPG. Restaurants have started dropping slow-simmered dishes from their menus because they consume large amounts of cooking gas, while industries, such as brick and tile manufacturing, ceramics and glass kilns, are also facing difficulties in sustaining operations due to gas shortage.
Essential services, including crematories, laundries and hospital kitchens, are similarly struggling to maintain regular activity, even as bakeries, street-food vendors and community kitchens report curtailing output amid tighter LPG availability. States have been given 48,000 kilolitres of additional kerosene, she said, adding that Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Kerala, Manipur, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, and Karnataka have taken stocks from this additional quota.
India, she said, continues to be self-sufficient in petrol and diesel, with no fuel dry-outs reported at retail outlets.
With as much as 30 per cent of India’s gas supplies being impacted due to the blockage of the Strait of Hormuz, supplies to priority segments, such as piped cooking gas (PNG) and CNG, remain fully protected, while supplies to industrial and commercial users have been curtailed to about 80 per cent.
As many as 12,000 raids have been conducted and 15,000 cylinders seized, the official said, adding that oil companies have conducted 2,500 surprise inspections of LPG dealerships and petrol pumps. Meanwhile, a second Indian-flagged LPG tanker reached the country early Tuesday after safely sailing from the war-hit Strait of Hormuz, and efforts are on to ensure the safe passage of the remaining 22 Indian vessels still stranded in the conflict zone.
The LPG tanker, Nanda Devi, reached Kandla port in Gujarat at around 2.30 am this morning, said Rajesh Kumar Sinha, Special Secretary in the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways. On Monday, the first ship, Shivalik, reached Mundra port in Gujarat. The two ships are carrying about 92,712 tonnes of LPG – equivalent to a day’s requirement of cooking gas in the country.
Currently, 22 Indian-flagged vessels carrying 611 seafarers remain in the western Gulf, with the Directorate General of Shipping (DG Shipping) monitoring operations closely in coordination with ship owners, agencies and Indian missions, he said.
The Centre on Tuesday assured the Bombay High Court that it is making all attempts on domestic and international fronts to address the hardship caused by the LPG shortage amid the ongoing conflict in West Asia.
The Nagpur bench of the court accepted the Centre’s submission and disposed of the petition filed by LPG distributors, noting that it is taking “all the necessary steps in the matter to protect the interests of individuals”.