LPG consumers with last refill prior to June 2025 will not get cylinders till e-KYC done

Nashik: As commercial establishments stagger and households simmer under the worsening LPG crisis, a fresh shockwave is has hit consumers. Govt oil marketing companies (OMCs) have drawn an unflinching red line —anyone whose last cylinder was delivered before June 2025 will simply not be served till s/he completed e-KYC process.Officials said there was zero relaxation for commercial cylinders too, contrary to what some distributors had suggested. "There is no change whatsoever in the booking or delivery system for commercial cylinders. The situation is exactly the same," a senior OMC official said. "Even we were perplexed by rumours of leniency," the official said.With domestic consumers bearing the brunt of the LPG shortage, the petroleum ministry is scrambling to ensure genuine households don't suffer. But for commercial users, officials have a blunt message: shift to alternate fuels, a transition many have already begun.To tighten the system further, the ministry has now blocked refill orders for all consumers whose last refill predates June 2025. "Anyone who hasn't booked a cylinder in the last nine months will not receive one unless s/he completes e-KYC," the official said.The logic is simple. If a consumer hasn't booked a refill, it likely means s/he has either moved away or shifted to other sources like PNG or no longer relied on LPG for cooking.Govt has also begun integrating PNG databases with LPG records, creating a unified system to identify dual-connection users. "The latest order of the ministry states that those having PNG connections are not entitled to get refill cylinders, nor can they apply for LPG connection. The system has already started blocking the booking orders of such consumers," the official said.In Nashik alone, more than 30,000 consumers hold both LPG and PNG connections — many retaining the LPG cylinder exclusively for heating bathwater and other auxiliary needs. But with the new rules tightening like a vise, even this workaround may soon disappear.