Odisha bans open market LPG sales, mandates e-KYC for cylinder procurement

Bhubaneswar: LPG cylinders will no longer be available in open market, and only those customers who have completed their e-KYC can procure them from authorised dealers, announced Odisha food supplies and consumer welfare minister Krushna Chandra Patra on Sunday. Additionally, the sale of 5kg cylinders in open market has also been banned from Sunday, Patra added.The move, Patra said, is directed towards ending black marketing of LPG cylinders in the state amid complaints of their scarcity and unavailability.The minister, while speaking to reporters here, said there have been complaints about unauthorised sale of both domestic and commercial LPG cylinders in the open market at exorbitant rates. “The department has been proactive in its efforts to curb this and has been successful to a large extent. There is no disruption in supply of domestic cylinders and, as per the new guidelines, it is being supplied to an urban consumer in 25 days and within 45 days of booking in rural areas,” he said.Patra added e-KYC has been mandated for domestic consumers to ensure that only genuine people are provided the cylinders, and there is no black marketing. “The LPG distributors have been told to provide the cylinders only to the consumers who have completed their e-KYC. Also, only the LPG distributors, who have the licence to sell cylinders, will be allowed to do so. The earlier practice of anyone procuring a cylinder and selling it in the open market has been prohibited. There will be no LPG available in open markets from this day onwards,” he said.Patra also said that the open sale of 5kg cylinders were illegal, and that the LPG dealers have been warned against selling them illegally. Those who have valid LPG connections can get the 5kg cylinders refilled from the authorised dealers.The state has sufficient stock of petrol and diesel, the minister added.In another development, 27 LPG cylinders were seized from a gas agency during a raid by the food supplies and consumer welfare department officials in Dhenkanal town on the day, following allegations of black marketing.