Punjab man suffers heart attack while waiting for LPG cylinder, dies

BARNALA: In the first reported casualty linked to the ongoing LPG shortage, a 60-year-old man died of cardiac arrest while standing in a queue to obtain a gas cylinder at Sehna village in Punjab’s Barnala district on Friday.Bhushan Kumar, a resident of Sehna, was among more than 125 people waiting to get an LPG cylinder when he suddenly collapsed. He died on the way to hospital while being taken for treatment. Bhushan was at serial number 25 in the queue of 125 customers. Residents said they had started assembling outside the Indane gas agency before 5am, even though the agency had announced that distribution would begin at 8am. By about 7.50am, over 125 people had queued up when the incident occurred. Those standing in line also alleged that the agency had increased the waiting period for refilling cylinders to 45 days, whereas earlier refills were being given after about 25 days. Customers who had received their last supply within the past 45 days were reportedly turned away.The anxiety over LPG supplies has grown so intense that people have begun reaching LPG dealerships before 5am and waiting for hours. With no clear guidelines on the waiting period, tensions among customers are rising.Jagga Singh, who was standing at serial number three in the queue, said, “I had come at 4.30am and Bhushan Kumar arrived around 5am. We were shocked when he suddenly collapsed in the line. He breathed his last while we were taking him to the hospital.” He added that until Thursday, customers had been told that cylinders would be supplied after 25 to 30 days, but on Friday the agency said refills would be given only after a 45-day wait.Barnala Deputy Commissioner Harpreet Singh said, “It is very unfortunate that a person lost his life while waiting to get LPG supplies. I have ordered an inquiry by officials of the civil supplies department to check if there was any discrepancy regarding the number of days between supplies. We will also see whether some compensation can be provided to the bereaved family.”Barnala SSP Sarfaraz Alam said that while the death was unfortunate, it appeared to be a natural one. “The police will look into the circumstances leading to the death of the person in the queue,” he said.