New Delhi, March 24: The government on Tuesday said India has adequate stocks of petrol, diesel and LPG, and that all refineries are operating at high capacity despite disruptions linked to the Strait of Hormuz situation.
In an update on fuel availability, Sujata Sharma, Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, said petrol pumps across the country remain fully functional, though panic buying triggered by rumours led to unusually high sales in some areas.
She urged citizens not to engage in hoarding and to rely on official information.
Sharma said domestic LPG production has been stepped up, with no reported dry-outs at distributorships, even as supply remains under pressure due to the prevailing geopolitical situation. Deliveries continue as normal, she added.
Natural gas supplies to priority segments such as domestic PNG and CNG transport remain fully protected, while supplies to industrial and commercial users are being maintained at about 80 per cent of average consumption.
The government is pushing a shift from LPG to piped natural gas (PNG), with city gas companies accelerating connections and over 7,500 new domestic and commercial PNG links activated in the past day.
To ease supply constraints, additional allocations of commercial LPG and kerosene have been made, while alternative fuels such as coal are also being made available for small and medium consumers.
The Centre, she said, has asked states to step up enforcement against hoarding and black marketing under the Essential Commodities Act, with around 3,400 raids conducted, 642 FIRs registered and about 155 arrests made so far. (PTI)
