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Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi on Wednesday questioned the Central Government's claims of being prepared for the West Asia energy crisis, citing reports of gas-based crematoriums shutting down in Pune due to a lack of fuel.
Priyanka Chaturvedi, while speaking to ANI, said, "The USA kept saying they would take some action against Iran. Two days before the war started, our Prime Minister arrived in Israel. The war first started from Israel's side, and the US supported it. During the session, the Petroleum Minister replied that we have 72 days' worth of oil reserves. We have LPG stock, no shortage of LNG. We are prepared for any situation. When prices were low, the public got no benefit; oil companies kept making profits, but as soon as prices rose, they increased the cylinder prices... Today, industries dependent on gas are being affected. In Pune, the crematorium has been shut down. What preparations had you made?" Meanwhile, MP Sanjay Raut launched a sharp attack against the Centre over the LPG cylinder shortage across the country amid the ongoing West Asia conflict, saying that the government's assurances were proven wrong. Addressing a press conference in the national capital, Raut expressed concern over restaurants and other industries reportedly closing down due to a shortage of LPG and fuel. He said, "The biggest issue in the country right now is the situation arising from the conflict between US-Israel and Iran. There is a shortage of commercial and domestic gas. When the conflict began, the Modi government said that there would be no impact on India and there would be no price rise. The assurance by the Prime Minister, Finance Minister and External Affairs Minister has failed. Restaurants are closing down in Mumbai and other cities." On the other hand, on Tuesday, Union Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri assured that domestic consumers in India will not face any shortage of energy amid the West Asia crisis. He said CNG and PNG supplies to households are fully secure, and industries continue to receive most of their energy needs, emphasising there is no reason to panic. In a post on X, Puri said, "In today's informal interaction with members of the media fraternity, we discussed that India's energy imports are continuing to flow in from different sources and routes. We have taken steps to ensure that 100% supply of CNG & PNG to domestic consumers is ensured and other industries continue to get 70-80% of their supplies, despite the war situation." Earlier on Tuesday, the Union Government invoked the Essential Commodities Act (EC Act) to safeguard the domestic energy market. The Petroleum Ministry stated that the invocation of the Act has established a clear priority list for natural gas distribution to manage current supply constraints. Under this new mandate, there is a 100 per cent assured supply of domestic piped gas for homes and CNG for vehicles. Other sectors will face calibrated supply caps based on their previous six-month average consumption. These measures come as India, which typically sources 30 per cent of its natural gas via the Strait of Hormuz, navigates the logistical challenges posed by the regional conflict. To offset the current short supply, the Ministry noted that India is actively purchasing natural gas through alternative trade routes to maintain national energy security. (ANI)
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