LPG dealers likely to go on indefinite strike from Tuesday

The dealers' bodies also asked oil marketing firms to provide pilfer-proof seals on cylinders so that consumers get the exact quantity of gas

In what may hit the UPA government close to the elections, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) dealers across the country are planning to go on an indefinite strike from February 25 onwards.  

“We have several demands related to multiple pricing and stoppage of sales of smaller spurious cylinders. As far as DBTL is concerned, we have got complaints from distributors in Andhra Pradesh that some banks have created false accounts, based on data transferred to them by the distributors and money was transferred to these false accounts on a regular basis,” said Pawan Soni, general secretary of the Federation of LPG distributors of India.  

Batting for a single pricing regime, All-India LPG Distributors Federation General Secretary, Chandra Prakash, said, “Multiple pricing leads to diversion. Domestic subsidised cylinder costs Rs 400 to 450 approximately, whereas a non-subsidised cylinder costs Rs 1,240 to Rs 1,275. A 19-kg commercial cylinder is priced at Rs 1,850-1,900. Such varied pricing is the main cause for discrepancies in the LPG trade, for which the distributors are blamed for no fault of theirs.”

The dealers bodies also asked oil marketing companies to provide pilfer-proof seals on cylinders so that consumers get the exact quantity of gas.  

The associations alleged that pilferage of LPG is also responsible for the sale of two-, three- and five-kg spurious cylinders sold openly in the market by “unscrupulous elements” and there needs to be adequate steps to stop this.

“We should ensure foolproof home delivery. We also want government to lift the heavy penalties included under the Marketing Discipline Guidelines (MDG) 2014. We also demand immediate cancellation of newly advertised distributorships,” Prakash added.