Middle East Crisis: 54+ lakh domestic LPG refills delivered in a day, commercial allocation at 70% of normal levels, says Indian govt

US-Israel-Iran War Impact: The central government reiterated on Saturday that there are adequate stockpiles of petrol and diesel available across the country with no supply disruptions, and that LPG supplies remain normal with more than 54 lakh domestic refills delivered in a single day. It acknowledged that the LPG supply is affected due to the prevailing geopolitical situation in the Middle East. In an inter-ministerial briefing, official spokespersons stated that commercial LG allocation has been restored to 70 per cent of pre-Middle East crisis levels. Referring to household LPG supplies, they said that panic-buying persists in some pockets due to rumours, urging people once again to stay calm.

Efforts are on to expand the PNG network with faster approvals, incentives and policy support, they affirmed. The central government urged all the states and UTs to run daily briefings, acknowledging that 14 administrations are already doing so.

The Centre vowed to continue to extend support to the public to ensure smooth supplies, saying that it will continue to monitor West Asia developments in support.

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Middle East Crisis | Here are highlights from the March 28 inter-ministerial briefing in the national capital:

Crude oil and refineries

• All refineries operating at high capacity, crude inventories adequate
• Sufficient stocks of petrol and diesel
• Domestic LPG output from refineries increased to support domestic consumption
• Retail outlets operating normally
• Panic-buying reported in some areas
• Rumours led to panic buying at some retail outlets in a few states, leading to unusually high sales and heavy crowding at retail outlets
• There are adequate stocks of petrol and diesel available at all fuel stations
• Don't believe rumours

Natural gas

• Consumers prioritised with 100 per cent supplies to D-PNG and CNG-transport
• Supplies to industrial and commercial consumers connected to the grid at 80 per cent of average consumption
• City gas distributors advised to prioritise PNG connections for commercial establishments like restaurants, hotels and canteens
• IGL, MGL, GAIL and BPCL have offered incentives for taking domestic and commercial PNG connections
• Centre has requested its departments, states and UTs to expedite approval of applications required for expansion of city gas distribution networks
• Some states have come up with policies for faster right of user/right of way (RoU/RoW) permission, longer working hours and rationalisation of related charges
• Requisite approval for carrying out necessary work within 24 hours
• No road restoration charges
• City gas distributors to restore public assets at its own cost as per standards
• They reported 11,463 PNG connections -- new connections and old gas-in -- in 110 focused geographical areas on Friday

LPG

Domestic

• No reported dry-out at LPG distributorships
• Online LPG cylinder bookings up at 91 per cent on an industry basis on Friday
• Delivery Authentication Code (DAC)-based deliveries increased from 53 per cent in Feb to 84 per cent on Friday
• On the same day, more than 54 Lakh LPG refills delivered
• Domestic LPG cylinder deliveries are normal

Commercial

• Centre has already restored partial commercial LPG supply (20 per cent) to consumers
• It has proposed to allocate additional 10 per cent of commercial LPG to states and UTs based on ease-of-doing-business reforms for PNG expansion
• It has allowed another 20 per cent commercial LPG to states, taking the overall allocation to 50 per cent (inclucing 10 per cent based on ease-of-doing-reforms for PNG expansion
• This additional 20 per cent is on priority for sectors like restaurants, dhabas, hotels, industrial canteens, food processing/dairy, subsidised canteens/outlets run by states, UTs or local bodies for food/community kitchens, 5 Kg FTL for migrant labourers
• Centre has decided to allocate additional 20 per cent for commercial LPG; this will bring the total commercial allocation to 70 per cent of pre-crisis levels; this allocation will be for industries with priority to steel, automobile, textile, dye, chemicals and plastics
• Priority will be given to process industries or those requiring LPG for specialised heating purposes that cannot be substituted by natural gas
• On Friday, more than 46,000 5 Kg FTL cylinders sold
• 28 states and UTs have issued orders to allocate the non-domestic LPG in line with the central government guidelines
• For the remaining states and UTs, PSU OMCs are releasing commercial LPG cylinders
• A total of 33781 MT uplifted since March 14 by commercial entities in states and UTs

States and UTs

• States and UTs are empowered to act against any hoarding and black marketing
• They have to play a primary role in monitoring and regulating supply situation of essential commodities including petrol, diesel and LPG
• All chief secretaries, ACS/principal secretary/secretary food and civil supply of states and UTs are requested to:
  • Institutionalize daily press briefings at State/District level and issue regular public advisories.
  • Set up dedicated control rooms/helplines
  • Actively monitor and counter fake news/misinformation on social media
  • Intensify daily enforcement drives by district administrations
  • Carry out raids and inspections in coordination with OMCs
  • Issue commercial LPG allocation orders within their regions
  • Issue SKO allocation orders for additional SKO
  • Fast-track CGD expansion including expediting RoW/RoU permissions, 24x7 work permissions etc.
  • Promote PNG adoptions and alternate fuels
  • Nominate senior nodal officers for coordination with MoPNG

Enforcement action

• Raids continue in many states and UTs to check the hoardings and black-marketing of LPG
• About 2,900 raids already held
• More than 1700 cylinders seized on Friday
• PSU OMCs officials carried out surprise inspections at more than 1,600 RO and LPG distributorships on Friday
• PSU OMCs issued more than 390 show-cause notices to LPG distributorships till date
• Centre has given the highest priority to domestic LPG and PNG along hospitals and educational institutions
• It has implemented several rationalisation measures on both supply and demand sides
• Alternate fuel options like kerosene and coal offered to ease pressure on LPG demand
• Coal Ministry has issued order to Coal India and Singareni Coallieries to allot higher quantities to states for distributing coal to small, medium and other consumers
• States are advised to facilitate the new PNG connections for domestic and commercial consumers

Public advisory

• Centre making all efforts to ensure petrol, diesel and LPG availability
• Avoid panic-purchase of petrol and diesel and panic-booking of LPG
• Beware of rumours
• Rely only on official sources for correct information
• For LPG, citizens requested to use digital mode for bookings, avoid visiting LPG distributors unnecessarily
• Citizens should use alternate fuels like PNG, induction/electric cooktops etc.
• Citizens requested to make necessary efforts to conserve energy in daily usage

Shipping

• Necessary steps taken to safeguard Indian vessels and seafarers operating in the region
• Ports, Shipping and Waterways Ministry continues to monitor shipping movements, port operations and safety of Indian seafarers
• It will ensure the continuity of maritime trade
• Indian seafarers in the region are safe
• No incident involving Indian-flagged vessels reported in the past 24 hours
• 20 Indian-flagged vessels with 540 Indian seafarers remain in the western Persian Gulf region
• They are being actively monitored by Directorate General of Shipping in coordination with ship owners, RPSL agencies and Indian Missions
• DG Shipping Control Room operational 24x7
• It has handled 4,431 calls and 8,865 emails since activation, and 105 calls and 309 emails in the past 24 hours
• It has facilitated safe repatriation of over 938 Indian seafarers so far, including 25 in the last 24 hours
• Port operations across India remain normal with no congestion
• Additional cargo space allocated
• State Maritime Boards of Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Puducherry confirmed smooth functioning
• Coordination continues with the Ministry of External Affairs, Indian Missions and maritime stakeholders to ensure seafarer welfare and uninterrupted operations

External Affairs

• Indian Missions and Posts continue to be in touch with the Indian community and continue to extend assistance, along with issuing necessary advisories for their safety and well-being
• The Ministry of External Affairs continues to closely monitor developments in the Gulf and West Asia
• Safety, security and welfare of the Indian community remains the highest priority
• Dedicated special control room operational; regular coordination with States/UTs for information sharing and response
• Missions and Posts across the region are functioning round-the-clock with 24x7 helplines
• Regular advisories being issued
• Continuous engagement with Indian community groups and local governments
• Assistance being extended to seafarers, students, stranded nationals and short-term visitors for visas, consular services and logistics
• Since 28 February, around 4,97,000 passengers have returned to India from the region
• UAE: Around 85 non-scheduled flights expected to operate today from various airports to India
• Saudi Arabia and Oman: Flights continue to operate to India
• Qatar: With partial reopening of airspace, around 8–10 non-scheduled flights expected today
• Kuwait and Bahrain: Airspace remains closed; special non-scheduled commercial flights of Jazeera Airways of Kuwait and Gulf Air of Bahrain are operating from Dammam airport of Saudi Arabia to India
• Iran: Travel of Indian nationals being facilitated via Armenia and Azerbaijan
• Israel: Travel being facilitated via Jordan
• Iraq: Travel being facilitated via Jordan and Saudi Arabia
• 5 Indian nationals injured in Abu Dhabi due to falling debris from interception
• Mission extending assistance and coordinating medical care
• All reported to be out of danger