Bengaluru, 10 April

Karnataka Minister KH Muniyappa, on Friday, urged the Central government to address the auto gas supply issue at the earliest, accusing it of failing to come to the rescue of auto drivers when private LPG bunks have hiked their prices or closed operations.

He met senior officials and representatives from state-run oil and gas companies regarding the auto gas supply issue, following the crisis in West Asia.

The Minister for Food, Civil Supplies & Consumer Affairs told reporters that there was an improvement in the supply of commercial cylinders, but not for auto gas, despite representations from the Chief Secretary and Chief Minister.

“Out of around 5 lakh autos in the State, 3 lakh depend on auto gas. Of these, 1.6 lakh are in Bengaluru, and they are facing difficulties,” he said, adding that Karnataka has the highest number of autos running on gas.

Pointing out that 280 MT of auto gas is required per day, of which 60 MT is supplied by government companies like IndianOil, BPC, and HPC, and the remaining 220 MT by the private sector, Muniyappa said private companies have failed to ensure supply.

“As the private sector has stopped supplying, the pressure is on government-run gas stations. This has resulted in long queues and a kind of chaos,” he said, adding that he would soon call a meeting with private companies.

He noted that 65 per cent of auto LPG supply comes from private companies and 35 per cent from government companies. “Some private companies have stopped supplies, citing shortages, while others have hiked prices. The Centre has to take measures to control this,” he said, noting that the Centre allowed private companies.

“Ensuring supply is the only solution to this issue; there is no other option. The Centre should procure auto gas from wherever possible and ensure supply to auto drivers,” he said. “We want a response from the Government of India and the Petroleum Minister on whether they can ensure supply at the earliest, and if not, what the alternative is.”

He added that gas companies must provide domestic cylinders to customers on the 26th day, noting that a cylinder only lasts 25 days.

Distance does not mean no consequences: Navy Chief on Iran war

Navy Chief Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi on Friday said that distance from a conflict does not equate to distance from its consequences.

“The ongoing tensions in West Asia and subsequent disruptions to maritime traffic are reminders that security is interconnected, persistent and unforgiving," Tripathi said at the Tri-Service seminar "Ran Samwad" in Bengaluru.

He added that technological advancements are compressing timelines and merging operational domains, making traditional military doctrines less predictable.

“Today, there is no fixed system of war, no rigid doctrine that we can blindly rely upon," he said. "In many ways, multi-domain operations are not different from our civilizational wisdom. Our own strategic thought has long recognised that the pursuit of national objectives extends beyond any single form or domain of conflict."

'Ran Samwad' seminar is conducted annually on a rotational basis between the three services. It brings together senior officers from the three services, academicians, think-tank scholars, industry experts and Foreign Service Attaches from friendly foreign nations.