Door-to-door delivery of LPG refills, still a pain for some

Agencies do not deliver at doorsteps, say consumers

Karnataka, Mangaluru: 30/01/2015: The customers speaking at the LPG consumer meet at Ullal, near Mangaluru. Photo: H.S.Mannunath

Door-to-door delivery of LPG refills is still a pain for the people of Pavoor, Arekala and the surrounding areas. LPG consumers alleged on Friday that the refills are stocked at a place from where the consumers are asked to take them on their own.

Participating in a grievance meeting of LPG consumers for Avinash Enterprises at Ullal, organised by the district administration, they said they had to bear the additional cost of autorickshaws and were inconvenienced by the agency’s failure to deliver refills at their doorstep.

A woman said while Bharat Gas agency was supplying refills at her neighbours’ doorsteps, this was not the case with the Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd. dealer based in Ullal. Their plea was that the road was not good.

A consumer added that agency would immediately cancel the booking if the house was found locked. Many dependent on daily wages were adversely affected.

A spokesperson for the distributor said only where the addresses had changed the door delivery was not being given while a HP official assured of looking into the issues.

Deputy Director, Food and Civil Supplies, C.S. Sharanabasappa said the distributor is expected to ensure delivery right up to the kitchens of the households and even connect it to the stove.

A consumer said the delivery personnel never weighed the cylinders though they were expected to do so while delivering the refills. When the distributor maintained that delivery persons were being sent with weighing machines, the consumer said delivery persons were not obliging the requests for weighing them.

The consumers demanded that the delivery persons should have a badge with their names so that they could be identified. A few consumers also said they were asking for more money than the billed amount.

The consumers were asked to dial HPCL official on 78299-07827 or 271468 in case they had any problem with the distributor and register their grievances.

Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd. has imposed a penalty of Rs. 1.56 lakh on an LPG distributor in Mangaluru for deficiencies in service. Deputy Director for Food and Civil Supplies C.S. Sharanabasappa said that the quality of service by distributors all over the district was being watched.

He told The Hindu that consumers had complained about delay in supplies and poor customer relations.

In-charge Assistant Director Sunanda said the distributor, Mangala Gas Distributor, Falnir Road, had also stocked refills near the office against rules.