The Union government on Saturday allowed an additional 20% allocation of commercial liquefied petroleum gas to states and Union Territories, taking the overall allocation to 50%.
Of the total amount, an allocation of 10% will be given on the condition that states undertake measures to ease the expansion of the piped natural gas network.
The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas said that the additional 20% allocation will be given on priority “to sectors like restaurants, dhabas, hotels, industrial canteens, food processing/dairy, subsidised canteens/outlets run by State Govt or local bodies for food, community kitchens, 5 kg FTL [free trade LPG] for migrant labourers”.
Energy supplies to India have been disrupted since the conflict in West Asia broke out on February 28. Since the hostilities began, Iran has blocked the Strait of Hormuz – through which about20% of global petroleum liquids consumption passes – for most commercial ships.
Due to the disruption, the Centre had initially curtailed the supply of LPG to commercial establishments, and had prioritised domestic supplies. Subsequently, the government had restored a commercial allocation of 20%, and had proposed the additional allocation of 10% subject to states undertaking reforms for the expansion of piped gas.
The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas on Saturday acknowledged that LPG supply remains a concern because of the prevailing geopolitical situation. However, it claimed that no dry-outs have been reported at LPG distributionships, panic bookings have reduced and the delivery of domestic LPG cylinders is normal.
The Centre also said that natural gas supplies to priority segments, including domestic PNG and CNG transport, are being fully maintained, and that industrial consumers were receiving about 80% of their usual supply.
Earlier this month, the prioritisation of domestic LPG supplies had led to disruptions for businesses. Hotel associations had warned that the operations of restaurants had been hampered in Mumbai and Bengaluru, and that the shortage was spreading.
The conflict in West Asia began after Israel and the United Stateslaunched a joint operation to “degrade the capabilities” of the Iranian government. Tehran retaliated by striking Israel and US military bases in the region, and targetingmajor cities in other Gulf countries and some ships.
While Israel has been claiming that Iran is close toobtaining a nuclear weapon, Tehran has long maintained that its nuclear programme is for civilian purposes.
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