LPG supply crisis hits JNU canteens; students demand preventive steps

The JNUSU on Monday said a march to the office of the dean of students will demand preemptive measures ensuring smooth and uninterrupted functioning of mess and dhabas on the campus, amid the LPG supply crisis.

The call for the march by the student union -- planned for Tuesday -- comes as the food menus in the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) canteens continue to be hit.

According to the two separate letters sent from the Indraprastha Gas Limited to the mess heads of Sabarmati and Lohit hostels, "....supplies to all industrial and commercial customers are being restricted to 80 per cent of their average consumption for last six months with effect from 6 am on 11th March 2026".

 

With the gas supply being cut by 20 per cent, the revised mess menu of the Lohit hostel specifies that no roti and poori will be available on certain days.

The menu specifically mentions that no roti will be available for Tuesday and Saturday lunch, with replacements like "only rice" or khichadi added instead.

A statement by the Disha Students' Organisation (DSO) highlighted that some food items have already been cut by canteens due to the "impending crisis"; for example, no samosas are being served in the SIS (School of International Studies) canteen anymore, and tea is unavailable in the TEFLAS canteen.

A student from the SIS said, "In the coming days, if the crisis continues, mess menus will be altered even further and prices of the food will increase. For a large number of students who come to institutions like JNU, they cannot afford hiked prices of food."  The student added that while the current changes to the mess menu are not yet a major problem, anxiety and apprehension among the student community have already begun to grow.

Student organisations such as DSO and Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union (JNUSU) have called upon the university administration to ensure the smooth functioning of mess facilities and dhabas, and to ensure that mess fees are not increased during the crisis.