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By:

Quaid Najmi

4 January 2025 at 3:26:24 pm

Commercial LPG 'evaporates' in Maharashtra

Mumbai : The short supply of commercial LPG cylinders turned ‘grim’ on Wednesday as hundreds of small and medium eateries – on whom the ordinary working Mumbaikars depend on for daily meals – shut down or drastically trimmed menus, on Wednesday.   With an estimated 50,000-plus hotels, restaurants and small food joints, the crunch is beginning to be felt severely, said Federation of Hotel and Restaurant Association of India (FHRAI) vice-president and Hotel and Restaurant Association Western...

Commercial LPG 'evaporates' in Maharashtra

Mumbai : The short supply of commercial LPG cylinders turned ‘grim’ on Wednesday as hundreds of small and medium eateries – on whom the ordinary working Mumbaikars depend on for daily meals – shut down or drastically trimmed menus, on Wednesday.   With an estimated 50,000-plus hotels, restaurants and small food joints, the crunch is beginning to be felt severely, said Federation of Hotel and Restaurant Association of India (FHRAI) vice-president and Hotel and Restaurant Association Western India (HRAWI) spokesperson Pradeep Shetty.   “We are in continuous touch with the concerned authorities, but the situation is very gloomy. There is no response from the Centre or the Ministry of Petroleum on when the situation will ease. We fear that more than 50 pc of all eateries in Mumbai will soon down the shutters. The same will apply to the rest of the state and many other parts of India,” Shetty told  ‘ The Perfect Voice’ .   The shortage of commercial LPG has badly affected multiple sectors, including the hospitality and food industries, mass private or commercial kitchens and even the laundry businesses, industry players said.   At their wits' ends, many restaurateurs resorted to the reliable old iron ‘chulhas’ (stoves) fired by either coal or wood - the prices of which have also shot up and result in pollution - besides delaying the cooking.   Anticipating a larger crisis, even domestic LPG consumers besieged retail dealers in Mumbai, Pune, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Ratnagiri, Kolhapur, Akola, Nagpur to book their second cylinder, with snaky queues in many cities. The stark reality of the 12-days old Gulf war with the disturbed supplies has hit the people and industries in the food supply chains that feed crores daily.   “The ordinary folks leave home in the morning after breakfast, then they rely on the others in the food chain for their lunch or dinner. Many street retailers have also shut down temporarily,” said Shetty.   Dry Snacks A quick survey of some suburban ‘khau gullies’ today revealed that the available items were mostly cold sandwiches, fruit or vegetable salads, cold desserts or ice-creams, cold beverages and packed snacks. Few offered the regular ‘piping hot’ foods that need elaborate cooking, or charging higher than normal menu rates, and even the app-based food delivery system was impacted.   Many people were seen gloomily munching on colorful packets of dry snacks like chips, chivda, sev, gathiya, samosas, etc. for lunch, the usually cheerful ‘chai ki dukaans’ suddenly disappeared from their corners, though soft drinks and tetrapaks were available.   Delay, Scarcity  Maharashtra LPG Dealers Association President Deepak Singh yesterday conceded to “some delays due to supply shortages” of commercial cylinders, but assured that there is no scarcity of domestic cylinders.   “We are adhering to the Centre’s guidelines for a 25 days booking period between 2 cylinders (domestic). The issue is with commercial cylinders but even those are available though less in numbers,” said Singh, adding that guidelines to prioritise educational institutions, hospitals, and defence, are being followed, but others are also getting their supplies.   Despite the assurances, Shetty said that the current status is extremely serious since the past week and the intermittent disruptions have escalated into a near-total halt in supplies in many regions since Monday.   Adding to the dismal picture is the likelihood of local hoteliers associations in different cities like Pune, Palghar, Nagpur, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, and more resorting to tough measures from Thursday, including temporary shutdown of their outlets, which have run out of gas stocks.

Robin Hood to kingmaker?

Updated: Nov 25, 2024

Bachchu Kadu

Achalpur MLA Bachchu Kadu sports an image of Robin Hood. He has dedicated his life for the cause of the society and has instilled a confidence in the minds of people that he shall be there to help them in any of their needs. While reacting to the exit poll results, he said that the new government won’t be in place without support of independents like him.


Born as Omprakash Babarao Kadu in Belora village of ChandurBajar taluka of Amravatoi district in Maharashtra on July 5, 1970, Bachchu Kadu has strong ideals since very young age. He staged his first agitation when he was still a school boy. The agitation was against Tamasha (a vulgar form of folk dance) shows in his village. While he was pursuing his degree in commerce, he was immensely under the influence of Balasaheb Thackeray and even joined Shiv Sena. He was elevated to taluka chief of the organization when he exposed a toilet scam. However, he quit the party when requests for fund to help handicapped individuals was declined.


Kadu’s political journey began in 1997 when he was elected as a member of the Panchayat Samiti. Kadu contested his first assembly election in 1999 and lost by 1300 votes. Many of his friends had lent him money to be able to contest polls. His wife too had mortgaged all her ornaments to raise election funds for him. He contested again in 2004 and has been getting elected from the constituency since then. Yet, Kadu still doesn’t have a house of his own and lives in a rented house. He has one more distinction that he was the only MLA in Maharashtra legislature who opposed hike in the remuneration that the members of the legislature get.


As the founder of the Prahar Janshakti Party, Kadu has been a vocal advocate for the welfare of marginalized and underprivileged sections of society. His party’s mission is to address the needs of these communities and ensure their representation in the political arena. Kadu’s dedication to social causes is evident in his various initiatives, including his work with the Divyang Welfare Committee, where he has launched campaigns to improve the lives of differently-abled individuals in Maharashtra.


Kadu’s tenure in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly has been marked by his active participation in legislative processes and his efforts to bring about meaningful change. He has held several ministerial positions in the state government, including Minister of State for Water Resources, School Education, Woman and Child Development, Labour, and OBC-SEBC-SBC-VJNT Welfare. His ministerial roles have allowed him to influence policy decisions and implement programs aimed at improving the lives of his constituents.

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