<p>If Petroleum Minister Jaipal Reddy is to be believed, every household in the country that consumes more than six LPG cylinders a year may be indulging in acts of dishonesty. <br /><br /></p>.<p>On Tuesday, Reddy asserted that an average household doesn’t require more than six cylinders a year. If the demand crosses the six-cylinder mark, the implication is clear to the minister: cooking gas is diverted to non-cooking purposes. <br /><br />The minister’s assertion came at the end of a two-day Economic Editors Conference in the national capital, as he vociferously stated in response to a barrage of questions from mediapersons on whether the government would consider raising the limit of subsidised cylinders pegged at six a year.<br /><br />“We (the government) have said we will provide six subsidised cooking gas cylinders for each family in a year. Now, if there is a demand for more than this, it means, the refills are going somewhere else than just cooking,” he said.<br /><br />It was not long ago that an official website came out with the names of VIP gas guzzlers, which also included Petroleum Minister Jaipal Reddy, who used 26 cylinders in a year. But the same minister remained seemingly unnerved by the large-scale public outcry for raising the cylinder cap. <br /><br />Reddy has perhaps forgotten that his family consumed as many as 26 cylinders in one year, according to the information put out on a government website three months ago. Ironically, the portal was launched by the minister himself.<br /><br />While the government maintains that an average Indian household needs only six subsidised LPG cylinders in a year, the decision has spelt trouble for a large number of families across the country.<br /><br />But while these families may buy additional cylinders paying the market price charged by authorised gas supply agencies, the assertion by Reddy that consumers divert gas cylinders for non-cooking purposes raises eyebrows . <br />The minister, however, acknowledged that in urban areas, people need more cooking gas cylinders than their rural counterparts.<br /></p>
<p>If Petroleum Minister Jaipal Reddy is to be believed, every household in the country that consumes more than six LPG cylinders a year may be indulging in acts of dishonesty. <br /><br /></p>.<p>On Tuesday, Reddy asserted that an average household doesn’t require more than six cylinders a year. If the demand crosses the six-cylinder mark, the implication is clear to the minister: cooking gas is diverted to non-cooking purposes. <br /><br />The minister’s assertion came at the end of a two-day Economic Editors Conference in the national capital, as he vociferously stated in response to a barrage of questions from mediapersons on whether the government would consider raising the limit of subsidised cylinders pegged at six a year.<br /><br />“We (the government) have said we will provide six subsidised cooking gas cylinders for each family in a year. Now, if there is a demand for more than this, it means, the refills are going somewhere else than just cooking,” he said.<br /><br />It was not long ago that an official website came out with the names of VIP gas guzzlers, which also included Petroleum Minister Jaipal Reddy, who used 26 cylinders in a year. But the same minister remained seemingly unnerved by the large-scale public outcry for raising the cylinder cap. <br /><br />Reddy has perhaps forgotten that his family consumed as many as 26 cylinders in one year, according to the information put out on a government website three months ago. Ironically, the portal was launched by the minister himself.<br /><br />While the government maintains that an average Indian household needs only six subsidised LPG cylinders in a year, the decision has spelt trouble for a large number of families across the country.<br /><br />But while these families may buy additional cylinders paying the market price charged by authorised gas supply agencies, the assertion by Reddy that consumers divert gas cylinders for non-cooking purposes raises eyebrows . <br />The minister, however, acknowledged that in urban areas, people need more cooking gas cylinders than their rural counterparts.<br /></p>
