CM Siddaramaiah Presses for More Commercial LPG in Karnataka

Industrial and service sectors in Bengaluru are reeling from LPG scarcity, spurring Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s direct outreach to Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri via a Thursday letter. He seeks urgent augmentation of commercial and auto LPG to avert escalating disruptions.

Triggered by federal emphasis on home use, supplies have dwindled despite state compliance. Against a 50,000-cylinder daily demand from eateries, hotels, caterers, and PGs, allocations linger at 1,000, shuttering businesses left and right.

Communities from tech hubs to farms feel the pinch, as dependent services falter. The CM decried missing oversight mechanisms for commercial LPG, divergent from domestic IT tools, causing allocation anomalies.

Rickshaw drivers powering city commutes via auto LPG endure parallel hardships, with opacity hitting earnings hard. Anticipating tanker influxes, Siddaramaiah advocated for Karnataka-specific quotas reflecting urban demands.

Federal action now could normalize flows for users and transporters alike. Echoing this, Supplies Minister Muniyappa urged a week’s forbearance in the assembly, citing 40,000 unmet needs daily and ships from Iran in Qatar, poised for arrival post-center diplomacy.