Centre doubles daily supply of 5 kg LPG cylinders for migrant workers

New Delhi: The Centre announced on Tuesday that it has doubled the daily quantity of 5 kg LPG cylinders being provided to each state for disbursal to migrant labourers.

“The supply of 5 kg LPG cylinders is being doubled based on the average daily supply to migrant labourers during March 2-3, 2026, beyond the limit of 20 per cent mentioned in the letter dated March 21. These 5 kg cylinders will be at the disposal of the state government for supplying only to migrant labourers in their state with assistance of the public sector oil marketing companies,” the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas said in a statement.

Since March 23, about 7.8 lakh 5-kg free trade LPG cylinders have been sold. More than 1.06 lakh 5 kg cylinders were sold across the country on Monday against a daily average of 7,7000 in the month of February, the statement said.

The public sector oil companies have also organised around 1,300 awareness camps for 5 kg cylinders during the last four days, in which more than 10,000 cylinders were sold.

The overall LPG supply continues to be affected by the prevailing geopolitical situation, but the supply of domestic LPG cylinders remains normal, and no dry-outs have been reported at distributorships, the statement said.

Online LPG bookings have increased to about 96 per cent of the total, while delivery authentication code (DAC) based deliveries have increased to around 90 per cent to prevent diversion.

Total commercial LPG allocation has been increased to about 70 per cent of pre-crisis levels, including the 10 per cent form-linked allocation.

About 86,439 metric tonnes of commercial LPG (equivalent to over 45.5 lakh 19 kg cylinders) have been sold since March 14, while more than 3.4 lakh 19 kg cylinders were sold on Monday.

A three-member committee of Executive Directors from Indian Oil, HPCL and BPCL is coordinating with state authorities and industry bodies to plan commercial LPG distribution.

Meanwhile, enforcement actions continue across the country to curb hoarding and black marketing of LPG, and more than 4,300 raids were conducted, and over 1200 cylinders were seized across the country on Monday, the statement said.

States have also been advised to facilitate the new PNG connections for both domestic and commercial consumers.

All refineries are operating at high capacity, with adequate crude inventories in place. The country is also maintaining sufficient stocks of petrol and diesel. Domestic LPG production from refineries has been increased to support domestic consumption, the statement said.

The Government is making all efforts to ensure the availability of petrol, diesel and LPG, and citizens are advised to avoid panic purchase of the fuels as well as unnecessary booking of LPG. Citizens are requested to use digital modes for booking of LPG cylinders and avoid visiting LPG distributors unless necessary, the statement said.

The statement also urged households to use alternative fuels such as PNG, induction and electric cooktops wherever feasible. In the current situation, all citizens are requested to make necessary efforts to conserve energy in their daily usage.

People are also advised to beware of rumours and rely only on official sources for correct information.

IANS