LPG crunch continues, supplies rationalised for commercial users
New Delhi, Mar 20 (PTI) LPG supply crunch continued for the third straight week on Friday, but there was some easing in bookings for refills, in signs of things slowly crawling towards normalcy.
However, concerns persist as supply restrictions on commercial consumers, including hotels, remain in place due to ongoing disruptions in input supplies caused by the West Asia conflict.
The war in the Middle East, triggered by the US and Israel attacks on Iran, has led to the shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz — the critical shipping lane through which India gets 60 per cent of its imports. The overnight wiping away of such large volumes led to the government prioritising supplies to domestic household kitchens.
Supplies to commercial establishments were initially stopped, but later restored to a fifth of their requirement.
This triggered panic buying by domestic users, fearing that the availability of their gas cylinders too may be rationalised. Panic booking peaked at 87.7 lakh on March 13 but fell thereafter.
At a media briefing, Sujata Sharma, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, said on March 19, around 55 lakh bookings were made, down from 57 lakh on the previous day.
Pre-war average booking per day was 50-55 lakh.
“Panic booking is coming down,” she said, adding that the government continues to prioritise the supply of available LPG to domestic households.
However, “LPG (supply) situation remains worrisome, but there is no dry out at any LPG distributor,” she said.
She said in the last week, 11,300 tonnes of commercial LPG were given to commercial establishments.
