NO LPG PRICE HIKE

The price of domestic LPG cylinders will not be increased and the number of subsidised refills given to consumers would continue, Union Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said today. "LPG will be provided to the consumers at the same rate at which it is being made available now. No additional burden will be imposed on them. The subsidy and the number of subsidised cylinders that people are getting will be continued by our government," Pradhan told reporters here. About petrol and diesel prices, he said these are big issues and the central government is paying attention to them. "Petrol prices have been out of control since 2006 when it was connected to the market price mechanism. Diesel prices are still under control with subsidies. "There is a need to increase oil and gas production in the country. The policy should be such that neither the government nor the farmers and poor should feel burdened," the minister said. Pradhan, who is scheduled to take stock of the oil and gas situation in Bihar at a meeting with Indian Oil Corporation officials during the day, expressed concerns over the low LPG penetration in the state, which is 26 per cent as compared to 45-50 per cent in others. At the meeting, the condition of Barauni refinery in Bihar would be reviewed, besides the status of the proposed gas pipeline between Haldia to Jagdishpur. Low LPG penetration will also be reviewed, he added.