Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday chaired a key meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) to review actions taken by various ministries/departments amid the West Asia crisis. This was the second meeting of the Coordination and Cooperation Committee headed by the Prime Minister on this issue.
During the meeting, Prime Minister Modi reviewed diversification of LPG and LNG supplies, as well as fuel duty reduction and energy sector measures to ensure fundamentals remain stable. In a statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office after the meeting, the government said efforts are being made to diversify energy, fertilizer and other supply chains globally. In order to diversify, new flows of LPG and LNG from different countries are being facilitated.
The Cabinet Secretary briefed the members on the measures taken to ensure supply of petroleum products, especially LNG and LPG, and provision of adequate energy. The Prime Minister’s Office statement said that interventions in the sectors of agriculture, fertilizers, shipping, aviation, logistics, medium, small and micro companies were discussed to confront the challenges arising from the crisis.
Measures to reduce hoarding and black marketing are in place
The Cabinet Secretary briefed the Prime Minister on anti-diversion measures to curb hoarding and black marketing of LPG. State governments have also been asked to curb black marketing, hoarding and diversion of fertilizers through daily monitoring, raids and strict action.
The Prime Minister’s Office said that initiatives have been taken to expand pipelined natural gas connections.
“Measures such as exempting 7-8 GW gas fired power plants from gas collection mechanism, increasing rake to put more coal in thermal power plants etc. have also been taken to ensure availability of power during peak summer months,” the office said.
LPG prices are the same, and food prices remain stable
The Cabinet Secretary told PM Modi that LPG prices for domestic consumers remained the same.
According to a PMO statement, retail prices of food commodities have remained stable over the past month, with control rooms set up for continuous monitoring and interaction with states and union territories. Prices of agricultural products, vegetables and fruits are also monitored.
