War impact: 21-day gap mandatory between bookings for LPG refill

Kolkata: Fears triggered by the ongoing conflict in West Asia have reached households in Kolkata, prompting a surge in panic bookings of domestic LPG cylinders. Alarmed by the sudden spike in demand, oil marketing companies (OMCs) introduced a mandatory lock-in period between bookings to prevent hoarding and to stabilise supply. Also, LPG dealers' associations in Kolkata said there could be a Rs 60 hike in LPG prices, with the 14.2-kg household cylinder cost rising to Rs 939 and the 19 kg commercial cylinder going up to Rs 1,990.

Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) and Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) have introduced a 21-day lock-in period for domestic LPG refills. The restrictions came into effect on Friday after booking volumes shot up sharply over the past few days.


Distributors' associations also acknowledged the unusual spike in demand. "The panic bookings have led OMCs to fix a lock-in period on Friday so that consumers don't hoard cylinders. Such panic bookings would put tremendous stress on the supply chain," said Bijon Bihari Biswas, spokesperson for LPG dealers and distributors. "There was an abnormal jump in bookings since Wednesday," said Sukomal Sen, senior vice-president (eastern region) of All India Bharat Gas Distributors Association.

Data from distributors indicate that booking levels surged sharply in the Kolkata metropolitan region.

On Friday alone, IOC reportedly received around 1.5 lakh bookings across Kolkata, North 24 Parganas and South 24 Parganas, compared with the usual 1 lakh bookings per day. Distributors across the city said the surge created delivery bottlenecks.

OMCs have urged consumers not to panic, stressing there is no shortage of LPG and that the supply chain remains intact. Officials confirmed that LPG bookings rose 15%–20% in the last five-six days across parts of Bengal, particularly in Kolkata and adjoining districts.

An official of a leading oil PSU explained that panic buying began affecting bottling operations.

"Some of our bottling plants were operating at 20% lower capacity because there were not enough empty cylinders returning for refilling," the official said.

"Many trucks are not coming back with empty cylinders as customers are booking more cylinders than they actually require."

The average daily LPG demand in Bengal stands at 5 lakh cylinders, according to industry sources. Of this, Indian Oil supplies nearly 3 lakh while the remainder is distributed by BPCL and Hindustan Petroleum (HPCL).

Despite the surge, IOC officials insisted that supplies remain sufficient. "There is no scarcity of LPG as of now. Customers should not indulge in panic booking," said K M Thakur, chief general manager (LPG) of IOC.

"I already had one cylinder in use but booked another because everyone was talking about possible supply disruptions," said Madhumita Ghosh, a homemaker from Dum Dum. "If there is uncertainty in the world, people naturally worry about essential items."

Similarly, Sanjay Guha, a resident of Behala, said he booked a refill earlier than usual. "Normally, I wait till the cylinder is almost empty. But hearing about the war and shortages elsewhere made me cautious," he said.