BHUBANESWAR: Amid the ongoing LPG crisis, the state government on Friday decided to frame a comprehensive city gas distribution (CGD) policy for expansion of piped natural gas (PNG) connections across Odisha.
Officials of the Housing and Urban Development (H&UD) department said the proposed CGD policy will facilitate faster rollout of PNG infrastructure, strengthen coordination between stakeholders, and position Odisha as a frontrunner in adopting clean and sustainable urban energy solutions.
Sources said the crisis of irregular supply of commercial cooking gas due to the West Asia conflict has forced the state to find alternatives and reduce large-scale dependence on LPG.
H&UD additional chief secretary (ACS) and IDCO chairperson Usha Padhee held a high-level meeting with the GAIL (India) Limited and IOCL to deliberate on a strategic roadmap for the expansion of PNG across the state. She stressed drafting of the CGD Policy at the earliest to strengthen Odisha’s fuel supply network.
Padhee emphasised on building a future-ready and citizen-centric policy framework aligned with the state’s long-term development goals. She called for a practical policy framework that supports rapid expansion of city gas distribution networks across urban Odisha.
“The proposed policy would play a pivotal role in enhancing access to clean, efficient and reliable energy, while contributing to sustainable urban development and improved service delivery,” Padhee said.
The H&UD ACS also said that the futuristic policy will simplify processes, accelerate infrastructure rollout and significantly enhance the ease of living for citizens across urban centres.
Department officials said the meeting focused on key components of the proposed policy including streamlining of permissions, rationalisation of licence fees, introduction of single-window clearance systems and operationalisation of deemed approval mechanisms.
The discussions also covered adoption frameworks, institutional coordination and service delivery systems to ensure its seamless implementation.