For quite some time now, India has been facing oil and gas crisis due to the ongoing conflict between Iran and America. As a result, the general public is facing shortage of gas cylinders. In view of this, the government has recently issued an order stating that people who use piped natural gas (PNG) connections in their homes will no longer be eligible to get LPG cylinders.
**Government issued orders**
It is noteworthy that on Monday, the government had issued an order immediately banning the purchase of LPG cylinders by households with PNG connections. The LPG shortage has been further exacerbated by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz – a result of the ongoing conflict between Iran, the US and Israel – which has forced India to reduce LPG supplies to some industrial sectors. In the year 2025, India is expected to consume 33.15 million metric tonnes of LPG, the majority of which was used for cooking purposes. About 60% of this total consumption was imported, of which about 90% came from the Middle East.
**Government is promoting adoption of PNG**
On the one hand, the government is actively encouraging consumers to switch to piped gas connections. On the other hand, it has been decided to stop the supply of gas cylinders to existing PNG consumers. The government is implementing this step in view of the current shortage of gas. Moreover, petrol and diesel prices have increased recently; Considering this trend, now the prices of gas cylinders are also likely to increase.
