Karnataka’s Congress MLC Ivan D’Souza expressed concerns in the Legislative Council about the scarcity of commercial LPG cylinders, leading to the closure of numerous hotels and impacting food availability. This shortage even affected the Legislators’ House, where breakfast items like idlis and dosas were unavailable. D’Souza highlighted that around 50% of hotels in the state have closed due to the lack of commercial cooking gas, affecting public access to breakfast.
The situation has also affected government-run Indira Canteens, causing challenges in providing subsidized breakfast due to the insufficient supply of LPG cylinders. D’Souza urged the government to engage with hotel owners and stakeholders to address the crisis effectively. In response to the concerns raised, Food and Civil Supplies Minister K.H. Muniyappa acknowledged the issue and assured efforts to manage the limited availability of commercial LPG cylinders.
Muniyappa mentioned that during the Assembly session, the government would supply commercial cylinders to the Legislators’ House to fulfill part of their demand. However, due to the ongoing shortage, only a portion of the requirement could be met. P.C. Rao, the Honorary President of the Bengaluru Hotel Owners’ Association, highlighted disparities in the distribution of commercial LPG cylinders, noting higher supplies in other states compared to Karnataka.
Rao emphasized that if only 1,000 commercial cylinders are distributed daily in Karnataka, hotels would receive merely one cylinder per month. He questioned why Karnataka faced severe shortages while other states managed to avoid such crises. Rao indicated that while other states experienced some scarcity, hotels remained operational without closures. The association planned to address these issues in discussions with the government to seek clarification and resolution.
