NEW DELHI, Mar 25:
The Government on Wednesday said there is no shortage of petrol, diesel or LPG in the country, and urged citizens not to believe rumours circulating on social media or resort to panic buying.
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LPG supplies remain affected due to the ongoing disruption in the Strait of Hormuz.
In a media briefing, Sujata Sharma, Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, said all refineries are operating at high capacity with “adequate crude inventories”, while “sufficient stocks of petrol and diesel are being maintained” and retail outlets are functioning normally nationwide.
“Don’t believe in rumours. We have adequate fuel stocks and the Government is making all efforts to reach them to consumers,” she said.
She said “panic buying was reported in some areas due to rumours”, leading to unusually high sales and crowding at petrol pumps, even though “adequate stocks of petrol and diesel are available at all petrol pumps”.
“There are enough stock of petrol and diesel and there is no shortage of any retail outlet (petrol pump). Oil terminals also have enough stocks,” she said.
On LPG, the Government said supply “continues to be affected due to the prevailing geopolitical situation”, though no dry-outs have been reported and cylinder deliveries are continuing as normal.
Additional allocations have been made to States, with commercial LPG supply now raised to 50 per cent in phases, prioritising sectors such as restaurants, hotels and community kitchens.
To ease pressure on LPG, the Government is accelerating the shift to piped natural gas (PNG), with priority allocation ensuring “100 per cent supply to domestic PNG and CNG transport”, while industrial and commercial users are receiving around 80 per cent of their usual supply.
City gas distribution (CGD) companies have been directed to prioritise PNG connections for households and key institutions, with incentives being offered for both domestic and commercial users. The government has also asked states to fast-track approvals for pipeline expansion and simplify right-of-way permissions.
Sharma said in the last 25 days 2.5 lakh new PNG connections have been issued and 2.20 lakh LPG consumers have shifted to PNG.
Additional measures include higher domestic LPG production, extra kerosene allocation of 48,000 kilolitres to states, and promotion of alternative fuels such as PNG, electricity and coal to reduce dependence on LPG.
States have been directed to crack down on hoarding and black marketing, with over 2,700 raids conducted, around 2,000 cylinders seized, more than 650 FIRs registered and 155 arrests made so far. (PTI)
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