Kathmandu, Aug 17: The government’s decision to sell LPG directly has failed to ease Nepal’s month-long gas shortage. Instead, consumers face longer queues, empty cylinders and tighter restrictions.
The Nepal Oil Corporation began selling gas at designated points across Kathmandu Valley on Saturday, requiring buyers to show citizenship certificates or national identity cards. On Sunday, many consumers spent hours in line only to return home without a cylinder.
Rajendra Lama travelled from Kavresthali to the corporation’s Teku sales centre and waited six hours before giving up. Dipesh Maharjan, whose cylinder had been empty for 10 days, also reached Teku after failing to get gas at a depot near his home in Sitapaila. He joined the queue at 9am but still failed to get his turn.
They were among thousands facing similar problems at government run sales centres. Consumers said they should not have to carry cylinders across the city, wait all day and still return empty handed. They have urged the government to restore distribution through local dealers and depots.
The Gas Sellers Federation Nepal has also demanded an immediate end to direct sales, arguing that the government has disrupted the established dealer-based distribution network.
Federation president Gyaneshwar Aryal said bypassing dealers and distributing gas through industries and designated centres had created further confusion. He also accused the government of restricting supplies to dealers while subjecting them to unnecessary inspections.
The federation said the shortage cannot be explained simply by inadequate imports. According to the Nepal Oil Corporation, 3.838 million cylinders reached consumers in Shrawan, while monthly domestic consumption stands at around 3.5 million cylinders. Yet the shortage persists, raising questions about the distribution and availability of more than 300,000 additional cylinders.
The federation said LPG imports had also fallen by around 60,000 tonnes over the past four months, adding pressure to the supply system.
It further blamed the growing number of cylinders in circulation, claiming that around eight million new cylinders are already in the market, far more than required. It warned that allowing continued sales of new cylinders could worsen shortages in the coming months.
The federation has called on the government to stop direct sales and restore distribution through authorised dealers, arguing that the existing network is better placed to deliver gas to consumers close to their homes.
People’s News Monitoring Service
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