she noted, “no stockouts have been reported thus far.”

The Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas (MPNG) on Saturday appealed to citizens to refrain from panic booking of gas cylinders, requesting them to book only when it is “absolutely necessary” and preferably online.

Sujata Sharma, Joint Secretary (Marketing & Oil Refinery), MPNG, also informed that the government has decided to allocate “a certain quantity of LPG to commercial cylinders” as well.

“There was considerable discussion regarding commercial cylinders, following which a decision was taken to allocate a certain quantity of LPG to commercial cylinders as well. In this context, discussions have also been held with the State Governments. Consequently, these commercial cylinders have been placed at the disposal of the State Governments to prioritize the consumers,” the Joint Secretary said.

She added that the distribution of commercial cylinders has already commenced in approximately 29 states and Union Territories, and they have reached consumers following the discussions.

According to the Joint Secretary, online booking currently stands at approximately 84%; however, she said the figure needs to improve to nearly 100%.

Joint Secretary Sujata Sharma stated that LPG supply remains a matter of concern for the government in light of the prevailing geopolitical situation; however, she noted, “no stockouts have been reported thus far.”

Sharma emphasized that instances of panic booking remain excessively high. “The figure I shared with you yesterday—approximately 7.5 to 7.6 million bookings—has now risen to nearly 8.8 million..." she added.

Raids to curb black marketing and hoarding

The Joint Secretary (Marketing & Oil Refinery), Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas, also said that raids and surprise inspections are being carried out on an ongoing basis to curb black marketing and hoarding.

“There are several states where joint teams comprising state officials and oil marketing companies have been formed; these teams have also conducted inspections and raids,” she added.

Such raids are being conducted in states like Maharashtra and Rajasthan. In Uttar Pradesh, surprise inspections were conducted at around 1,400 locations, as per the Joint Secretary.

In this regard, around 20 FIRs have been registered, several individuals have been taken into custody, and prosecution proceedings have been initiated against approximately 19 people.

Raids have also been conducted in Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Odisha, and Karnataka.

Required Gap between the last delivery and the next booking

She clarified that in urban areas, there is a mandatory minimum gap of 25 days between the last delivery and the next booking, while in rural areas this gap is 45 days.

“If you attempt to book a cylinder before this period has elapsed, the booking will not go through,” she said while addressing complaints about people being unable to book gas cylinders.

Make bookings online

She also urged citizens to make use of the digital booking tools currently available, including IVRS, SMS booking, WhatsApp booking, and the mobile applications provided by the Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs).

“There is no need to visit a distributorship in person, stand in a queue, and then book or take delivery of a cylinder. Our Oil Marketing Companies have consistently delivered cylinders directly to your doorsteps in the past, and they will continue to do so. Therefore, there is absolutely no need to panic,” she added.

(For more news apart from “Refrain from panic booking, says govt amid gas cylinder supply concerns; certain qty of commercial LPG allocated," stay tuned to Rozana Spokesman.)