Gas Bags

When the doorbell rings at our house, there's always a moment of anxiety. Could it be yet another man coming over to check our gas pipe?

Several months ago this strange phenomenon began. A very "sarkari" looking man clad in khaki clothes, arrived at our doorstep to check whether there were any leaks in our gas pipe. He showed us a letter from the agency where he worked. Since things appeared to be in order we let him and he inspected our cylinder. "Oh, I have just arrived in time. Look at the cuts on the pipe. It could have been dangerous. You must replace it at once," he said, pulling out a brand new green pipe. In no time, he had fixed it and charged us Rs 70 in the bargain. We happily exchanged notes with our neighbour who had her gas pipe replaced too and congratulated ourselves on our good fortune.

 

A couple of months later another man arrived saying he had come to inspect our gas pipe. This time, we were a little sceptical. We told him that we had only recently had it replaced. He then quickly produced an articulated pipe from his sling bag , saying that if the gas pipe was covered, it would increase efficiency and serve as added protection from leakages. Although not altogether convinced, we shelled out another Rs 70 and had the cover fitted over the green pipe.

Soon after, when a third man arrived to "inspect the gas pipe", we called up our gas agency, who told us that they had received many similar complaints and on no account to let the man in. According to them, a racket was flourishing in the neighbourhood. After that we became adept at shooing away anyone on an inspection mission.

Recently we shifted house and had to call our gas agency to inform them of the change in address. To our surprise the man attending the phone was courteous and promptly entered the new address on the computer. No letters were asked for. For good measure, he said that he would send some one over to check whether we had installed our gas in the new house properly. True to his word, in half an hour the gas man arrived. As soon as he saw the covered pipe, he exclaimed, "What's this. A gas pipe needs breathing space and you should not cover it." He then proceeded to remove the offending cover. "Now see how long your gas cylinder lasts," he said, as he departed.

Normally, our cylinder finishes in three weeks. It's a month since the incident and we are still using the same one.