Harsimranjeet Kaur, President of All-India LPG Distributor Fedration

The state has been witnessing the shortage of LPG cylinders for more than two weeks now. Consumers are facing tough time as those who got their cylinders booked in the first week of November are yet to get the supply. The worst hit are those who have a single domestic cylinder. Harsimranjeet Kaur, President of All-India LPG Distributor Federation, said, “The supply of LPG has been delayed by companies. The delay varies between 5 to 20 days. The reason behind this is ‘product shortage’ by the companies. We have been told that Panipat Refinery was closed for some time for necessary maintenance work. This is one reason but festival season and winters also add to the delayed supply. Things might get improved in the near future.”  On the other hand, consumers say, “Every winter, LPG shortage occurs. The oil companies should have done their maintenance work before the onset of winter.” Sources reveal that the shortage has also resulted in black marketing of the LPG cylinders. According to sources, “The cylinder costing Rs 350 is being sold for Rs 500 or Rs 600.”