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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. Highlighting the recent progress in expanding PNG access, Sharma said the government has seen a significant rise in new connections and registrations over the past month. "In the last one month, around 3,33,000 PNG connections have been given. About 2.90 lakh new connections have been provided, and around 3.61 lakh new registrations have been received," she said. The push for PNG connections comes as the government looks to diversify energy access and manage domestic LPG demand amid geopolitical uncertainties affecting global energy markets. (ANI)
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