Commercial LPG shortage in India: Mumbai hotels make changes to their menus, long queues at Bhopal gas agencies

As the war between the US, Israel and Iran continues to push the tensions in West Asia to a boiling point, several Indian cities have already started to feel the heat due to a shortage of commercial LPG cylinders. In Mumbai, hotels have made changes to their menus amid the crippling scarcity of commercial cooking gas. 

One of the hotel owners told Aaj Tak that they are only preparing and serving a few basic items till the situation improves.

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A hotel owner said, "Due to the reduced gas supply, we've had to make changes to the menu as well; we're no longer able to offer customers their preferred dishes. For now, we're only preparing and serving a few basic items."

Hotel owners told the news outlet that even cooking meals for staff has become a major problem. "So far, no clear directives have come from the administration, and the situation remains completely uncertain," the owner said. 

AHAR- Indian Hotel and Restaurant Association's president told the news outlet that around 20 per cent of hotels in Mumbai have already shut down. It is not just hotel owners who are suffering; small business owners and households are also grappling with uncertainty over commercial LPG supply. 

A canteen owner said that he has only his last cylinder running as of now due to the lack of gas supply for the past 4-5 days. He said that he may have to close his shop in a while in such a scenario. 

Besides this, the Chhattisgarh Hotel & Restaurant Association (CGHRA) issued an advisory asking hotels, restaurants and caterers to avoid panic buying and hoarding of cylinders. The CGHRA advised establishments to prioritise essential kitchen operations, core menu items, and banquet events that have been previously booked. 

It suggested that food businesses should consider using electric cooking equipment like induction cooktops, electric hot plates, rice cookers, electric kettles, and rice cookers wherever possible. 

Furthermore, the association requested members to coordinate and immediately report any major disruptions in LPG supply. 

Moving to Bhopal, serpentine queues were spotted outside LPG distribution agencies as people claimed that online booking did not work, so they had to visit agencies and book cylinders offline. Locals told Aaj Tak that the situation has led to inconvenience as many households are unable to secure LPG cylinders. 

(With inputs from Dipesh Tripathi, Ravish Pal, Sumi Rajappan)