A severe LPG supply crisis has hit Indane gas consumers across Punjab, with a massive backlog of 1,18,825 refill bookings leaving thousands of households waiting between 10 and 30 days for cylinder deliveries across six LPG Sales Areas (LSAs) in the state.
The prolonged delays have triggered resentment among consumers and protests at local gas agencies, while distributors say they are facing mounting pressure and verbal confrontations from angry customers due to irregular supplies from bottling plants.
According to official figures, out of a total 4,04,539 pending bookings recorded across six LSAs on Friday, as many as 1,18,825 bookings had remained pending for more than 10 to 30 days.
The worst-hit area is Patiala LSA with 17,898 delayed bookings, followed by Chandigarh II LSA (16,270), Bathinda LSA (16,080), Ludhiana II LSA (13,466), Ludhiana I LSA (10,842) and Chandigarh LSA (6,631).
In Bathinda LSA alone, 116 bookings have remained pending for more than 30 days, while Ludhiana II LSA has reported 73 such cases.
Explaining the crisis, Anil Meher, Divisional LPG Sales Head (DLSW), said the situation worsened due to panic booking by consumers following reports of possible disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz.
“Even those who do not immediately need refills are trying to book at the 25-day mark, leading to a three-fold increase in bookings compared to normal periods,” Meher said.
However, LPG distributors argue that the problem goes beyond panic buying. Dealers claimed that against the standard delivery timeline of 48 hours, customers are now waiting anywhere between 10 and 30 days due to inconsistent supply from bottling plants.
“We are facing verbal altercations with customers because supplies are not reaching us regularly,” several dealers said.
Amid allegations of black marketing and diversion of domestic cylinders to the commercial sector, Indane has implemented a 95 per cent Delivery Authentication Code (DAC) system. Under the mechanism, LPG cylinders are delivered only after OTP verification by the registered consumer.
Meher said the DAC system has significantly reduced manual interference and diversion of subsidised cylinders.
“The shift to 95 per cent DAC usage is a major milestone in preventing manual diversion of domestic gas to the commercial sector,” he said.
The company is also using the ongoing exercise to push mandatory KYC updates for consumers to streamline subsidy transfers and future distribution processes.
Despite the growing consumer frustration, Meher expressed confidence that the situation would stabilise soon.
“We are monitoring the load daily and delivering more than 50,000 cylinders every day. The system is now much more robust with digital tracking, and we expect the situation to ease completely in the coming days,” he said.
