West Asia conflict: Gujarat cuts industrial gas use by 50 pc, domestic LPG supply unaffected

The Gujarat government has imposed a 50 per cent cut on industrial uses of gas amid concerns over the West Asia conflict a state minister said on Tuesday while assuring that domestic LPG distribution remains uninterruptedThe state and the Centre were coordinating closely to ensure that households do not face any shortage of cooking gas cylinders Gujarat Energy Minister Rushikesh Patel told reporters in Gandhinagar ahead of the assembly sessionMeasures were being taken in line with periodic guidelines issued by the central government to prevent panic and ensure the steady availability of LPG for households he saidThe state government is constantly working to make sure that no household is left without a cylinder We are in continuous contact with the central government regarding this the minister statedHe said restrictions have been placed on certain industrial uses of gas to prioritise domestic consumptionWe have imposed a 50 per cent cut in the gas supply to industries For fertiliser and milk processing there is a cut of about 40 per cent in gas supply Patel informedThe decision was aimed at ensuring that domestic users get cooking gas without any disruption he saidThis is to ensure that there is no disruption for domestic gas users The state government is committed to maintaining a regular and steady supply for households he addedResponding to a query about reports from Rajkot claiming that hotels and restaurants are getting messages about restrictions on commercial gas cylinders Patel denied any such directiveThere is nothing like that the minister assertedAs far as commercial gas cylinders are concerned there is currently no cut or restriction on them he saidThe governments immediate focus is to ensure that domestic kitchens continue to function normally and that there is no disruption to household cooking the minister saidTo ensure that no individual faces difficulty in getting cooking gas especially the gas used for domestic purposes the state and central governments are working together he addedThe oil ministry has constituted a committee to examine supply issues after a sudden shortage of commercial LPG cylinders alarmed the hospitality sector with restaurant associations warning that eateries could shut down within days if supplies are not restoredFor LPG supply to other nondomestic sectors a committee of three Executive Directors EDs of Oil Marketing Companies OMCs have been constituted to review the representations for LPG supply to restaurantshotelsother industries the ministry said in a post on XIndia consumes about 313 million tonnes of LPG annually As much as 87 per cent of this is in the domestic sector ie household kitchens and the rest in commercial establishments such as hotels and restaurantsOf this total requirement as much as 62 per cent is met through imports The US and Israels attack on Iran and Tehrans retaliation have shut the Strait of Hormuz the conduit through which India got 8590 per cent of its LPG imports from countries like Saudi ArabiaAs alternate sources are being scouted the limited supplies available meant the government prioritising supplies to the domestic sector and in the process the commercial establishments have sufferedEarlier on March 6 an industry representative said that around 100 ceramic manufacturing units in Gujarats Morbi have shut down due to disruption in gas supplies amid the ongoing West Asia conflictThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever