By IANS
Chandigarh : Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) distributors in northern India Saturday threatened a shutdown if the nationalised oil companies do not take corrective measure to reduce the severe shortfall in LPG supplies.
The all-India LPG distributors federation, north-western region, Saturday threatened closure of distribution agencies across Chandigarh and adjoining cities of Panchkula and Mohali in Haryana and Punjab respectively, Feb 13 if the nationalised oil companies did not take corrective measures to reduce the backlog of LPG cylinders to consumers.
“There is a consensus among LPG distributors that they are not only being put under stress because of non-availability of the product but also are being made responsible for all malpractices which have crept in. We are being unduly being given the bad name,” federation general secretary Reet M.P. Singh said.
The federation, which represents hundreds of LPG distributors in the states of Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and union territory of Chandigarh, has said that they were paying the price of the folly of the oil companies and have to face the ire of the public.
“Oil companies like Hindustan Petroleum and Bharat Petroleum have reduced supplies of domestic LPG to their distributors in the region at the height of the winter, which is a peak demand season.
“Both have cut supplies by nearly 10 percent in the last three months resulting in avoidable backlog among distributors who have to face the ire of consumers,” Singh pointed out.
Other LPG distributors told IANS that oil company officials did not react to the rising demand on time leading to the situation worsening when the winter extended into February also.
Oil companies also did not realize that consumers had started making use of LPG cylinders for gas heaters, geysers and even in automobiles.
“Every consumer has been short supplied LPG for 21 days,” a distributor pointed out.
But distributors say that since most consumers had multiple connections, they were somehow able to cope with the shortage. Bookings with distributors have piled up in recent weeks.
Oil company officials maintain that the backlog of supplies was only three to seven days. LPG distributors say that oil companies need to educate consumers not to put domestic LPG cylinders to other uses like in gas heaters, geysers and in automobiles.