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Amid a shortage of commercial LPG in Himachal Pradesh, meals for MLAs, ministers, officials, and staff during the ongoing Budget Session are being prepared using wood-fired ovens by the Himachal Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation (HPTDC).
Food for the Assembly is being supplied from Hotel Holiday Home in Shimla. On Friday, the sixth day of the session, HPTDC staff prepared meals for around 500-600 people using large utensils placed over traditional wood-fired furnaces. The food is then packed and transported in hot cases to the Assembly complex. Harvinder Singh, a chef with HPTDC, said the situation is unusual. "I have not seen such an LPG shortage in my career. We are not used to cooking on wood-fired ovens, but we are ensuring that food is prepared on time and delivered hot," he said. He added that this method has been in use for the past four days. Cooking on wood-fired stoves, locally known as bhattis, is common in rural parts of the state, especially during community events in districts such as Hamirpur, Kangra, Mandi, Bilaspur, and Una. Another HPTDC chef, Ashwani Kumar, who belongs to a traditional botti (community cooking) family from Hamirpur, said the team is managing large-scale cooking under the circumstances. "We are cooking for 500-600 people ezhednevno for the Assembly. While I am happy to continue this tradition, I am also concerned that if large-scale wood usage continues across the state, it could harm the environment due to tree cutting," he said, adding that dry wood should be used to reduce environmental impact. Senior chef Dhani Ram, who has over 30 years of experience, said he had not encountered such a shortage before and stressed the need for normal supply to resume. "In more than three decades of service, I have never faced an LPG shortage like this. It is important that the situation normalises soon. At the same time, traditional cooking methods should be preserved, but without harming the environment," he said. He emphasised that while the current practice is out of necessity, it also highlights the need to balance tradition with environmental conservation. Despite the challenges, HPTDC continues to ensure an uninterrupted food supply to the Assembly, blending compulsion with tradition as Himachal grapples with the fuel shortage. However, the ministers and legislators continue to raise issues over the shortage of LPG supply amid the crisis. (ANI)
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