From Monday, there may not be any home delivery of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cylinders to your house as the All-India LPG Distributors Federation (Karnataka Circle), which has been seeking increased distributor’s commission, has decided to stop delivery.
‘Not a strike’
Addressing reporters here on Saturday, federation secretary Sathyan N. reiterated that it was not a strike but customers have to collect LPG cylinders directly from their respective agencies.
Federation senior vice-president B.L. Lingaraju said: “We currently get Rs. 25.83 per cylinder for all categories of customers. We want the Union Ministry for Petroleum to announce the increase in commission by Sunday. A meeting is scheduled on Monday after which our stand will be made clear.”
Customers should know that the rate of the cylinders (non-subsidised) will change every month, depending on the international oil rates and dollar rates.
According to Mr. Sathyan, the Centre’s decision to cap the number of subsidised LPG cylinders to six a year was taken in haste and without taking into consideration distributors’ problems. “We should have been taken into confidence so that loopholes could be plugged. There is confusion over unwarranted operational issues now.”
Foolproof mechanism
He pointed out that a foolproof mechanism is yet to be incorporated to confirm delivery of refills.
“We have actually suggested single pricing for all categories of domestic consumers. Since the transparency portal is already in place, the subsidy amount can be sent to the consumers’ bank accounts directly. We seek a clear direction from the government in this regard.”
