BHUBANESWAR : At least 50,000 families in Bhubaneswar and 25,000 in Cuttack will get piped natural gas (PNG) directly supplied to their households by end of next year. GAIL (India) Limited, which has been authorised to operate in Khurda and Cuttack under the city gas distribution (CGD) project, has set a target to supply PNG to around 75,000 households in the two cities by December 2022 and add 20,000 more connections per year from 2023 onwards.
Started in 2017, infrastructure has been created at an investment of Rs 250 crore to supply piped gas to 20,000 households in the State Capital and 10,000 in Cuttack besides, 16 CNG stations in last four years.
From Nalco Nagar, the network has extended to Kalinga Nagar in Bubaneswar. Around 1,400 households are now getting PNG while the connection for 19,000 families is awaiting approval from the Petroleum and Explosives Safety Organisation (PESO).
General Manager of GAIL (India) Ltd Ashok Kumar Mohapatra said the work was hampered for nearly five months due to the pandemic. “The household connection has picked up momentum from this month. We will add 30,000 connections in Bhubaneswar and 15,000 in Cuttack in next one and a half years,” he said. The city has three source points at Mancheswar, Nalco Nagar and Trident Colony from where the 1,400 live connections are being supplied the cooking gas.
The company will set up five more source points at Aiginia, Pokhariput, Z1, Sahid Nagar/Satya Nagar and Forest Park to cover its target geographical area. “Once the Jagdishpur-Haldia/Bokaro-Dhamra Natural Gas Pipeline (JHBDPL) is ready, hopefully by March 2022, there will be no need for source points. Besides, we have planned to add 16 more CNG stations by March next year. At least seven will be made functional by August-end,” Mohapatra told TNIE.
The CNG sale which has picked up pace since last month with easing of the lockdown restrictions, has again crossed 6,000 kg at Bhubaneswar and is touching 2,000 kg at Cuttack. There are around 4,000 autos depending on the gas in Bhubaneswar and 800 autos in Cuttack.
SUPPLY SO FAR
PNG cover in Bhubaneswar - Nalco Nagar, Old LIC and New LIC colonies, Maitri Vihar, Four Railway colonies, Prachi Enclave, Kanchanjanga and Nandadevi Apartments, Kalinga Nagar K-4 & K-5, Trident Galaxy Apartments
PNG network in Cuttack - ARC campus Charbatia, CDA Sec-10 and 11