OilMin launches portal to check pilferage in LPG connections
New Delhi   25-Jun-2012

To check siphoning off of the LPG cylinders meant for household consumption, and to track the exact number of cylinders used per family, the Oil Ministry on Friday launched a ‘transparency LPG portal’.

These portals will provide complete details of each consumer with his consumer number, name, address and the number of cylinders supplied, dates of supply as well as the indicative subsidy amount for the cylinders supplied.

The LPG Transparency portal can be accessed through the official website of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas - www.petroleum.nic.in. Access is also available through respective oil company websites - www.indane.co.in, www.ebharatgas.com and www.hindustanpetroleum.co.

Petroleum Minister S Jaipal Reddy, who launched the portal, said, “the need to curb unauthorised usage of LPG for commercial purposes has become acute in recent times.”

According to the transparency portal, some of Oil Minister’s Cabinet colleagues have emerged as generous users of the aam admi’s fuel. Interestingly, Reddy, it was discovered through the portal (which has links in the ministry’s website as well as in those of the three oil marketing companies), himself consumed 26 cylinders between June 1, 2011 and May 31, 2012.

During the same period, Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar consumed 31 bottles, Heavy Industries Minister Praful Patel used 41, and Power Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde’s intake was 25.

The list of highest consumers was led by Vice President Hamid Ansari’s official residence in New Delhi, which consumed 171 subsidised LPG cylinders during the same period, while Minister of State for External Affairs Preneet Kaur used up 161 cylinders.

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna used 83 refills of 14.2-kg cylinder at his residence in the national capital and former Union minister M S Gill’s intake was 79.

The portal showed that industrialist Naveen Jindal’s 6, Prithvi Raj Road residence in the national capital received 369 refills, or more than one cylinder a day, through two LPG connections - one in name of his father late OP Jindal and another in name of one Radha Devi Rawat.

SP supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav consumed 58 refills at his residence in the national capital. His political rival and BSP chief Mayawati used 45 bottles, the same as Ram Vilas Paswan.

JD-U chief Sharad Yadav received 49 cylinders, Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot 45, RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav used 43 and former Telecom Minister A Raja used up 42 cylinders during the aforementioned period.