Speaking at an interaction in Kathmandu on Wednesday, hoarding of LP gas by consumers have further worsened the situation. Gokul Dhital, director general of Department of Supply Management and Consumer Protection (DoSMCP), said LP gas shortage is not easing as household consumers are keeping many LPG cylinders in stock.Similarly, Ram Krishna Subedi, Chief District Officer (CDO) of Kathmandu, said LP gas shortage can be eased through consumer awareness. "Consumers should consume LP gas wisely. Also, they should report concerned government if they see anomaly in LP gas distribution," he added.
Stating that bottlers have circulated around 400,000 new cylinders in the market after the Indian blockade, Subedi urged concerned agency to look into the issue and take appropriate action.
Subedi also informed that District Administration Office, Kathmandu, has deployed three monitoring teams to look into market anomalies, especially the anomalies in LP gas distribution.
Speaking at the program, Shiva Ghimire, president of Nepal LP Gas Industry Association, said that the focus should be on increasing LP gas import as per the market demand. "The demand has increased manifolds as consumers now own multiple cylinders," he said, urging the government to import an additional 80,000 tons of LP gas in the next two months to address the crisis.
Monthly demand for LP gas is around 27,000 tons. Though LPG supply in previous months was low, Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) is supplying normal volume in recent months. In Chaitra, it plans to import 30,000 tons.
According to Ghimire, almost 5 million out of 6.2 million cylinders in circulation are empty. He also said that only 127,744 tons of LP gas was imported in the past seven months against compared to the demand for 259,012 tons.
On the occasion, NOC Managing Director Gopal Khadka said that NOC has been increasing import LP gas in recent months. He also urged consumers to consume LP gas wisely.
Meanwhile, consumer activists have said that government officials and LP gas bottlers were trying to escape by passing buck on consumers. "It is natural for consumers to keep one extra cylinder. But this is not the only reason," Madhav Timalsina of Consumer Rights Protection Forum (CRPF).
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