The Nagpur bench of the Bombay High Court on Thursday sought responses from the Union government and a private firm on a petition by six liquefied petroleum gas distributors seeking an increase in the supply of domestic cooking gas cylinders, Bar and Bench reported.
A division bench of Justices Anil S Kilor and Raj D Wakode said that the matter was serious and of grave importance.
The petitioners alleged that exports were being prioritised over domestic supply despite the shortage of LPG caused by the energy crisis sparked by the conflict in West Asia. They claimed that Nagpur-based firm Confidence Petroleum India Limited had failed to increase the supply of household LPG cylinders even though the Union government had ordered that domestic distribution be prioritised, PTI reported.
The petitioners said they were directly facing the consequences of a “severely disrupted” LPG supply chain in Maharashtra’s Vidarbha region.
“This is causing widespread hardship to consumers across the country, particularly in the state of Maharashtra and the Vidarbha region,” Bar and Bench quoted the petition as saying.
The petitioners cited a March 9 order of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas that directed all refineries and petrochemical complexes to use their entire production capacity to produce LPG, which is to be made available to public sector oil marketing companies.
The bench on Thursday directed Confidence Petroleum to make sure that the storage and supply of LPG for domestic use was in line with the Centre’s policy, according to Bar and Bench.
The matter will be heard next on Tuesday.
Confidence Petroleum’s Chairperson Nitin Khara said the firm was considering unloading its LPG vessel in India, as opposed to its earlier plan to export a part of the consignment after unloading a portion domestically, PTI reported.
Khara was quoted as having told a regional news channel that the firm will file its reply in the High Court soon.
“We are committed to the people of India,” PTI quoted him as saying. “We were not expecting this situation to arise, and we had given some export commitment. But now the management is thinking of unloading the entire vessel in India.”
LPG shortages in India
Since the conflict in West Asia began on February 28, the supply of LPG in India has been disrupted as the country imports about 60% of its LPG demand, most of it from Gulf countries. This is because Iran has blocked the crucial Strait of Hormuz for most international commercial vessels.
However, Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri told Parliament on Thursday that there was no shortage of fuel despite the conflict in West Asia. “Field reports indicate hoarding and panic-booking at the distributor and retail level, driven by consumer anxiety rather than any actual supply shortage,” he maintained.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday urged state governments to enhance monitoring to prevent black-marketers and hoarders from taking advantage of the situation, The Hindu reported.
On the same day, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had alleged that India’s energy security had been compromised and attributed the situation to what he described as a “flawed foreign policy”.
Also read: From weddings to funerals, Iran war has hit life in India
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