New Delhi, March 10 Hard hit by the shortage of commercial LPG cylinders, the hotel association said on Tuesday that a large number of hotels and eateries in Mumbai will have to shut operations in the next two days if the situation is not resolved.
Similar disruptions are also being reported from Pune, Aurangabad, Nagpur, Delhi, Karnataka, Telangana, and Andhra Pradesh, Pradeep Shetty, Vice President, Federation of Hotel and Restaurant Association of India (FHRAI), said.
Amid the West Asia crisis, the government has revised the priority order for allocating domestically produced natural gas, placing LPG production alongside CNG and piped cooking gas at the top. This has led to a supply crunch for hotels and restaurants that use market-priced commercial LPG.
The shortage of commercial LPG has become extremely serious in the past week, with intermittent disruptions escalating into a near-complete halt in supply in several regions since Monday, said Shetty, who is also the Spokesperson, Hotel and Restaurant Association (Western India) - HRAWI.
"We are already receiving reports of severe shortages from cities including Mumbai, Pune, Aurangabad, and Nagpur, while similar disruptions are being reported in states such as Delhi, Karnataka, Telangana, and Andhra Pradesh. If the situation does not improve within the next two days, nearly 50 per cent of hotels and restaurants in Mumbai may be forced to temporarily shut operations depending on the stock of cylinders they currently have," he cautioned.
This will especially affect international tourists. Also, smaller and medium-sized eateries will be the first to be impacted, as they typically operate with limited reserves, Shetty stated.
He observed that while alternatives such as electric or induction-based cooking are gradually emerging, they are not yet viable for most commercial kitchens that rely on high-intensity, fast-paced cooking methods typical of Indian cuisine.
"Transitioning to such systems also involves significant cost and infrastructure changes. At present, the industry has no practical alternative and urgently requires the restoration of uninterrupted commercial LPG supply to ensure that hotels, restaurants, and food service establishments can continue operating without disruption," Shetty said.
Meanwhile, the oil ministry has constituted a committee to examine supply issues after a sudden shortage of commercial LPG cylinders alarmed the hospitality sector, with restaurant associations warning that eateries could shut down within days if supplies are not restored.