"Opposition has spread confusion": JDU MP Sanjay Kumar Jha on energy crisis

Speaking with the media, Jha said, "From day one, the Prime Minister has been saying--what was told in the all-party meeting and what we are also seeing on the ground--that the government is keeping watch and control over LPG and petrol-diesel. The government has repeatedly stated that there is no shortage of any kind. It is the opposition who has spread confusion."

On the other hand, Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of not "standing up for India" and "bowing down to Israel and America" amid the recent price hike of LPG and other fuels.

"LPG and fuel prices are all rising; trade is going to become more difficult under the circumstances. In the middle of all this, what is the policy of our central government under Narendra Modi? He is not fighting for his people. He is not fighting for India. He is not standing up for India. All he is doing is bowing down to America, bowing down to Israel," Priyanka Gandhi said.

Meanwhile, the Government is pushing the expansion of Piped Natural Gas (PNG) connections to reduce pressure on Liquified Petrolum Gas (LPG) supplies amid the ongoing crisis in West Asia, the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas said on Thursday.

Addressing an Inter-Ministerial Briefing on Recent Developments in West Asia, Sujata Sharma, Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, said the government has taken several steps to promote PNG connections across the country.

"The Indian government has taken several steps to promote PNG connections. This is also important because it will help ease the pressure on LPG," Sharma said.

She also recalled that the government had issued an order to encourage states to promote PNG expansion through ease-of-doing-business measures."In this context, I would like to remind you that the Indian government had issued an order stating that 10 per cent additional commercial LPG will be provided if state governments promote PNG expansion through ease-of-doing-business measures," she said.

According to Sharma, several states have already benefited from the policy.

"Around eight states have been given additional allocation and applications from three states have been received and are under consideration," she added. (ANI)