New Delhi: Amid the ongoing shortage of LPG, here’s why India is looking forward to a switch over to PNG. The government has mandated a transition from LPG to piped natural gas in areas where PNG is available. An order issued earlier this month states households will get a three month window to switch once notified. If they fail, their LPG supply may be discontinued.
Below are the reforms that are being pushed and aspects looked into:
1) Expansion: The government wants to rapidly expand the network of natural gas pipelines reaching homes and businesses. The focus is on big transmission lines to individual household connections.
2) Challenges faced: Companies trying to lay pipelines face hindrances in the form of multiple approvals from different authorities, besides exorbitant charges, land acquisition issues, residential areas, and even housing societies and RWAs often blocking pipeline work.
3) Not depending on imports: Many Indians continue using LPG cylinders even in areas where pipeline gas is available. The government wants to shift people away from LPG. This will be a shift from imported supply toward domestically distributed natural gas supply.
4) Centralisation: Instead of different rules in different states or cities, the government is creating one central legal framework for laying, building, operating, and expanding gas pipelines across the country. This means housing society or RWA can no longer block a gas pipeline company from laying pipes in the area.
