Amidst the ongoing tension in West Asia and increasing pressure on LPG supply due to the obstruction of the Strait of Hormuz, the Central Government has taken a major decision regarding the PNC connection. Now a new order has been issued to accelerate the expansion of natural gas pipelines.
The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas has notified the Natural Gas and Petroleum Products Distribution (including Laying, Construction, Operation and Expansion of Pipelines) Order, 2026 under the Essential Commodities Act, 1955. This order has come into effect with immediate effect.
In view of the increasing pressure on global energy supply, the Central Government has decided to rapidly expand the gas pipeline network to balance the domestic gas system. The government has made the approval process of pipeline projects (PNG) easier and time bound by implementing the Natural Gas and Petroleum Products Distribution Order 2026. This order has been issued under the Essential Commodities Act 1955.
Under this, now if a project is not approved within the stipulated period, it will get automatic approval, which can reduce the problem of delay to a great extent. Along with this, a unified process has been implemented to eliminate the need for repeated permission from different agencies. Clear guidelines have also been issued to stop extra charges or irregular collection at the local level. Standards like ‘Dig and Restore’ and ‘Dig and Pay’ have been implemented regarding road excavation and repair, so that a balance is maintained between construction work and urban amenities. The focus of this policy is to rapidly increase the penetration of Piped Natural Gas (PNG) in urban and semi-urban areas, so that the dependence on domestic LPG can be gradually reduced.
Recently, many types of rumors started spreading rapidly on social media regarding LPG gas booking, which created confusion among the people. In particular, it was being claimed that now new time intervals have been implemented for gas cylinder booking, such as 35 days for double cylinders, 25 days for single cylinders and 45 days for the beneficiaries of Ujjwala scheme.
Amidst these discussions, the government has clarified the situation and termed all such claims as wrong. Press Information Bureau (PIB) while sharing the information on its official platform
