LPG shortage: 20% hotels, restaurants shut down in Mumbai; operations hit in Bengaluru, Chennai

As the West Asia conflict continues for over ten days, hotels and other eateries in India are facing an LPG supply crisis.

After Bengaluru, other tier 1 cities like Chennai and Mumbai have also reported LPG shortage issues.

The Chennai Hotels Association on Monday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi requesting for uninterrupted supply of commercial LPG for the food industry under essential commodity.

"The situation has now become even more critical. Commercial LPG distributors have completely stopped supplying cylinders, stating that they have no stock available. As a result, many restaurants are forced to shut down," the association posted on X tagging CM M K Stalin and Deputy CM Udhayanidhi.

The issue has become even more serious in Mumbai, where around 20 per cent of hotels and restaurants have shut down so far due to disruptions in commercial LPG supply, according to the city’s hotel and restaurant association AHAR.

The association on Tuesday also warned that up to 50 per cent of hotels in the city could shut down within the next two days if the situation does not improve.

At the same time, hotel and restaurant operations in Bengaluru are likely to be affected starting March 10, following a sudden and total halt in the supply of commercial gas cylinders, the Bangalore Hotels Association said on Monday.

"Since the gas supply has stopped, the hotels will be closed from tomorrow," the association said in a release.

Noting that the supply of commercial gas cylinders stopped today, it said, since the hotel industry is an essential service, common people, students, and medical professionals, who rely on the hotels for daily meals, will be affected.

"In addition, our hotel industry will also face difficulties until the gas supply returns to normal," it added.

This development comes amid rising energy costs and supply constraints caused by the West Asia conflict.

The central government increased the price of LPG cylinders for commercial use by Rs 115 and for domestic use by Rs 60, he said, adding that "everyone is of the opinion that this is a lot. What they are doing is not right."