The Union government on Friday increased the commercial allocation of liquefied petroleum gas to 70% of pre-West Asia conflict levels, up from 50%.

This additional supply of non-domestic LPG is intended to support industries such as steel, automobiles and textiles, which are “labour-intensive and provide support to other essential sectors”, Petroleum Secretary Neeraj Mittal wrote in a letter to chief secretaries of all states and Union Territories.

“Among these, priority shall be given to process industries or those requiring LPG for specialised heating purposes that cannot be substituted by Natural Gas,” the letter added.

Announcing the decision on social media, Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri said that while many countries have adopted strict fuel conservation measures, India continues to “remain an oasis of energy security, availability and affordability”.

On Saturday, the government had allowed an additional 20% allocation of commercial liquefied petroleum gas to states and Union Territories, taking the overall allocation to 50%.

Of the total amount, 10% was to be allocated, subject to states undertaking measures to facilitate the expansion of the piped natural gas network.

Energy supplies to India have been disrupted since the conflict in West Asia broke out on February 28. Since the hostilities began, Iran has blocked the Strait of Hormuz – through which about 20% of global...

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