NEW DELHI: It was the fourth day when Ishrat Jahan, a resident of Kalyanpuri, did not cook food at home for her husband and her seven kids. She has been dependent solely on the leftover food handed over to her at homes where she works as a helper. She has no option but to burn the limited wood and coal on her rooftop just to heat some milk for her five-month-old daughter.
With her LPG cylinder yet to be delivered even 12 days after booking, Ishrat has been left with little choice but to burn scraps of wood and coal on her rooftop just enough to heat milk for her five-month-old daughter.
A kilometre away in the Kondli, a shop is illegally refilling cylinders, charging `550 for a small one and as much as `1,600 for a standard cylinder, prices of which are far beyond what Ishrat can afford.
“Chhota cylinder lelungi to ek hafte bhi nahi chalega aur `500 ka note yuhin hi khatam hojayega…” said Ishrat.
Almost a month since the LPG crisis started in the country amid the West Asia conflict, LPG agencies in the capital continue to witness long queues. From furious customers waiting for hours to get a cylinder to people waiting for almost two weeks for the delivery, the situation continues to be tense, especially for those who cannot afford one at black market prices.
As one of the 10-year-olds in the lanes of Kalyanpuri commented from behind, “Aaj kal to langar bhi nahi lag rahe k jaake aalu-poori khalo…”
While talking to an auto driver in Rajiv Chowk, Subodh said, “Any shortage that happens in the country always has the most brutal effect on the poor people; we have to face the brunt of everything that goes wrong.” Many are resorting to purchasing the cylinders in black but are ending up paying almost Rs 300-500 per kg. Talking about how he is managing the fuel for his household, Subodh said, “Yesterday only I bought a small cylinder for `300 per kg; I got it from someone who was selling the fuel in black. Eventually, this is going beyond our financial capacity,” he added.
“The place I got the cylinder from usually functions in the evening time and opens at around 6-7 pm,” he stated.
As of April 2, a 14.2 kg cylinder in Delhi costs Rs 913. An Indane gas agency godown in the Rajghat was seen giving cylinders to people who showed their receipts. However, Suraj, a resident of Chandni Chowk, said, “I had to stand for 2 hours in the queue to get my cylinder. However, I have seen people getting preferences in getting the cylinders while many people who are in need end up suffering,” he added.
The godown’s office is situated in the Delhi Gate area, and a visit there in the morning hours showed long queues with people being frustrated after not receiving their pre-booked cylinders for nearly 10-14 days.
“It’s been almost seven days since I booked my cylinder, but I still have not received it; it usually takes them 2-3 days to deliver,” said Rani Devi, a resident of Old Delhi.
“What’s more frustrating is the fact that the agencies are completely unresponsive over the phone,” she said. While pointing out the listed phone numbers on a poster in front of the agency office, she said, “These numbers are either switched off or unreachable.” We call up after every hour but to no response.”
Another lady, standing in the queue, claimed, “Before this crisis, we used to get our cylinders delivered at home, but now there is no such option.”
A resident of Sitaram Bazaar, Afreen questioned, “Is it even possible for us to leave our work and household and stand here for hours?”
Despite the visible tense situation outside the gas agencies since morning, the agency owners deny any such delayed delivery issues. One of the LPG gas agency owners from the Patparganj area claimed, “We never switch off our phones. People keep calling up at the wrong numbers given on the Google page.”
3 running illegal LPG refil racket, arrested
Three people were arrested for running an illegal LPG gas storage and refilling racket in southwest Delhi’s Palam area, police said on Thursday. They have been identified as Anaar Singh, Satyaveer and Vikas Kumar. Police have seized 45 gas cylinders, a tempo, and illegal gas refilling/transfer equipment. During inquiry, the accused persons failed to produce any valid licence or permission for storage of LPG cylinders.