BENGALURU: Food and Civil Supplies Minister KH Muniyappa said the present situation of shortage of LPG cylinders the food industry is facing is “inevitable” and it is not possible to supply commercial cylinders to hotels for at least a week as there are no stocks available. He advised hotel owners to use electric stoves, instead of LPG cylinders, and hoped that the situation would ease within 10 days.
He was replying to MLCs M Nagaraju and Ivan D’Souza at the Council here on Friday during the ‘zero hour’ on the disruption in the supply of cylinders and demanding that the food and civil supplies minister intervene and resolve the issue.
The MLCs said the shortage has affected hotels, with some shutting down, while others pruning their menu. It has affected food preparation at paying guest accommodations, prasada distribution at temples and operation of autorickshaws. The members pointed out that due to the shortage, cylinders are sold in the black market and there was a sharp rise in firewood prices.
Muniyappa said he met representatives from oil marketing companies on Friday morning. “Commercial cylinders would be supplied to hospitals, hostels and residential schools for now for preparation of food. Wherever there is a dire requirement, we would supply cylinders on priority,” Muniyappa said, requesting hotel owners to wait for at least a week.
“We are facing a problem now. But we hope that the situation will ease in one week or ten days,” he said.
On cylinders being sold in the black, he said deputy commissioners and the director general of police have been instructed to keep a tight vigil.