Varanasi (UP), March 15 A day after the distribution of prasad at the Annapurna temple in Varanasi was disrupted due to a shortage of LPG cylinders, the district administration surveyed the premises for piped natural gas (PNG) connectivity and offered a gas connection, said the temple's head priest.
The administration officials surveyed the temple premises and offered a PNG connection, Mahant Shankar Puri Maharaj said.
"Once the PNG connection is established, there will be a stable supply of gas, and the dependency on cylinders will be eliminated," he said.
The head priest claimed that the temple was facing a severe shortage of cooking gas, making it difficult to prepare prasad for devotees.
"Previously, gas agencies used to supply one or two cylinders, but that has stopped in the last two to three days," he had said, adding that one of the temple's two cooking units has shut down since Saturday morning, while the other is on the verge of closure.
The temple used to distribute prasad to around 20,000 to 25,000 devotees daily, but on Saturday, they could only accommodate about 3,000 people, Maharaj claimed, adding that officials have assured him of a supply, but the cylinders have yet to arrive at the temple.
The West Asia crisis has led to the near-closure of the Strait of Hormuz, from where approximately 90 per cent of India's LPG imports pass through. This has triggered supply concerns across the country, which has resulted in panic buying and a perceived shortage of LPG cylinders in many places.