Kamal Ghorui
Anxiety over LPG shortage has spilled over to the domestic sector, fuelling panic bookings of cooking gas cylinders, while server glitches in the IVRS and other online booking systems are prompting people to queue up outside distribution agencies, compounding the chaos and fraying the nerves of consumers as well as suppliers across the country.Despite govt’s direction to prioritise domestic LPG, consumers said supplies on the ground remained uncertain. Dealers maintained that while commercial LPG supply has come to a complete halt, domestic LPG supply has not been stopped but deliveries have slowed sharply.Amid an unprecedented surge in bookings through digital platforms, including mobile apps and websites, servers crashed, making people across cities dash to dealer outlets to get their cylinders refilled.LPG booking system not built for heavy traffic: DistributorsConsumers across the country complained that IVRS numbers, WhatsApp channels and other LPG booking systems are either inaccessible or unresponsive, and repeated attempts ended with the same message — “server down”. Many, who had already placed orders, said they are receiving cancellation alerts.Women accompanied by young children, elderly residents clutching empty cylinders, and office-goers who had taken time off work were seen standing in long queues for hours outside LPG outlets in Delhi, Gurgaon, Mumbai, Kolkata, Lucknow, Chennai and many other cities.Shashi Kant Sharma, vice-president of Federation of LPG Distributors of India, said the system was not built to handle such heavy traffic. “Bookings have risen tenfold, so the system has slowed. We are working on it at the backend,” he said.The Nagpur bench of Bombay HC on Thursday sought responses from Centre, Directorate General of Foreign Trade, and Confidence Petroleum India on a petition filed by six LPG distributors, who contended that continued LPG export amid a shortage in country runs contrary to govt’s March 9 direction imposing restrictions on export of essential commodities and mandating prioritisation of household supply.The crisis has prompted employers, after Infosys, to sound an alert to employees. Cognizant has encouraged employees to adopt ‘Bring Your Own Food’, wherever feasible. Hotels, restaurants, caterers, canteens, street vendors and other services continued to slim down menus, shut outlets and explore switching to alternatives.
