LPG crisis: Hotels, restaurants may close down from Friday

Guwahati (Assam), September 13, 2018:

Hotels and restaurants in Assam and the Northeast may be shut down from Friday due to an acute shortage of LPG cylinders.

The crisis was triggered by a strike called by the North Eastern Packed LPG Transporters Association (NEPLTA). The supplies have remained choked for the past six days.

The NEPLTA has gone on the warpath in protest against tweaking of terms and conditions as regards the tendering process by Indian Oil Corporation Ltd (IOCL) authorities. Blame it on the new tendering process that the rate per trip for transportation of LPG cylinders will decrease by around Rs.500. Also, the NEPLTA was miffed over the move by the IOCL to shift the operations of its head office from Guwahati to Kolkata.

As a result of the strike, the operations in six LPG bottling plants have come to a grinding halt. They cater to consumers in Assam and the whole of the Northeast.

“This is a serious crisis and the situation will aggravate further from tomorrow. According to feedbacks that we received, hotels and restaurants will start closing down from tomorrow,” an LPG dealer said. He said normalcy could have been restored but most drivers fled.

The principal secretary of food, civil supplies and consumer affairs department has already discussed the issues with authorities but there is no improvement in the situation.