KATHMANDU: Minister for Industry, Commerce and Supplies Deepak Kumar Sah has said the government has initiated both immediate and long-term measures to address the shortage of LPG gas, rising petroleum prices and unusual price increases in daily essentials.
Responding to questions raised by National Assembly members, Minister Sah said the ministry had used a “fishbone diagram” to identify the causes of the LPG shortage. He said dependence on imports, international prices, storage and refilling, uneven distribution, delays in returning empty cylinders, black marketing and weak inter-agency coordination had emerged as major factors.
“The government is very serious about the difficulties people are facing due to the shortage of LPG cylinders. The government is continuously working to resolve issues including the gas shortage,” he said. “The ministry has introduced the fishbone diagram as a technical analysis tool to identify the causes of the problem.”
Sah said Krishna Bhir lies on the “critical path” of the gas supply process and that work was being carried out in coordination with the Department of Roads. He said facilitation had also been provided for customs and transportation management.
According to Sah, 857,821 LPG cylinders were imported in Bhadra, 25.56 percent more than during the same period last year. He said there is currently no shortage of petrol, diesel or aviation fuel.
For the long term, the government has planned to extend the petroleum pipeline up to Lothar in Chitwan, construct a greenfield terminal and expand storage capacity. Infrastructure for petroleum storage in Karnali and LPG storage in Sarlahi will also be developed, he said.
Sah said the maximum retail price of sugar had been set at Rs 110 per kilogram. He said traders had been instructed to reduce the prices of rice and other daily essentials by 10 to 15 percent, while 25,000 metric tonnes of sugar had been imported from India.
He also said the government was working to add technical personnel to strengthen market monitoring and was positive about expanding consumer courts.
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