Imphal, August 30 2017: CAF&PD Minister Karam Shyam has remarked that LPG refills are being sold like potatoes in the black market .
The Minister made this remark at a joint meeting of CAF&PD, police, IOC, journalists and LPG distributors held today at the conference hall of Old Secretariat .
The meeting was held with the primary objective of checking leakage of LPG refills and sale of the same commodity at black market at exorbitant prices .
Speaking at the meeting, Karam Shyam stated that the department has carried out a survey and learnt about sale of LPG refills in black market .
Pointing out that this practice is illegal, the Minister called upon the gathering to collectively devise an effective mechanism to curtail the same practice .
Even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi has set a target of providing 12 refills to each consumer in a year, LPG consumers hardly get six refills in a year .
Shortage of LPG due to transport bottlenecks is understandable but IOC is answerable about the sale of LPG refills in the black market, Karam asserted .
One LPG consumer from Senapati district said that LPG refills are available in the black market at seven places within Senapati district.
The LPG refills are brought from Dimapur in Tata 407 and the LPG refills are transferred to vehicles plying between Imphal and Moreh during night .
After hearing the consumer’s tale, the Minister immediately rang the DGP and enquired about entry of LPG laden trucks from Dimapur .
He further asked the DGP to send a police officer to the meeting.
Accordingly, IGP L Kailun came and attended the meeting .
IOC officials stated that due arrangements have been made to start shipping all the existing backlogs regarding transporting LPG to the State from gas plants from September .
Informing that LPG would be transported along Imphal-Dimapur highway as well as Imphal-Jiribam highway, the IOC officials proposed constitution of a task force to check LPG sale in black market .
CAF&PD Commissioner K Radhakumar maintained that bandhs/blockades cannot be an excuse for the failure to ship in LPG .
LPG was shipped into the State even when there was blockade .
Questioning as to why the State has not been getting LPG to the full monthly allocation, Radhakumar asked IOC and LPG distributors the number of LPG refills as well as consumers’ list on daily basis .
The Commissioner said that they would check whether LPG distributors have been distributing LPG or not .
IGP L Kailun opined that LPG refills sold in black market must have been leaked from distributors as limited numbers brought through Mao and Jiribam cannot account for such a large number of refills .
One IOC official accepted that some households have multiple LPG connections .
One consumer expressed strong suspicion that LPG distributors based at hill areas might have sold off LPG refills at Imphal without taking them to their respective stations on account of transport and other problems .
Later, Karam Shyam appealed to all concerned to lift rice currently lying in godowns for the Government may not take responsibility if rice allocated on monthly basis is not lifted for a prolonged period .
CAF&PD Director Ranjan Yumnam was also present at the meeting.
Source: The Sangai Express
