AA Edit | LPG Strain Needs Structural Fix

Amid reported strain in the cooking gas supply, the government’s decision to boost the distribution of small 5-kg LPG cylinders could provide short-term relief to the consumer market and prevent panic buying of LPG in the country.

Oil marketing companies are also contemplating reducing the quantity of cooking gas in the standard 14.2 kg cylinder to 10 kg, which will again increase their ability to serve more customers with limited LPG supplies.

Managing LPG supplies is critical as nearly 98 per cent of Indian households use LPG for cooking. Any shortage would throw life out of gear for over 140 crore people in the country. However, only 40 per cent of its demand is from local sources. While these measures could manage the supply disruptions in the short-term, they cannot address the core issues such as the lack of alternatives to cooking gas derived from imported crude oil.

Though the government is trying to prod people to switch to PNG (piped natural gas), where the distribution network exists, it is a slow process and cannot provide relief to people immediately. Electric induction tops — whose production was ordered to increase — too offer a great alternative to LPG. However, people who have been using cooking gas, could face initial adjustment problems. The government should scale up its research on a domestic alternative like Dimethyl Ether (DME), which could be transported to users in pressurised cylinders.

The fear of LPG shortage has triggered a reverse migration of informal sector workers from Indian cities to villages. Rising cooking gas prices are compelling migrant workers to return to their villages, where they hope cheaper cooking alternatives like biomass will be available. Any such migration, however, could prove to be detrimental to society as it will rob the economy of its affordable source of workers.