Kathmandu. The Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers has held extensive discussions on the issue of resolving the problem of gas shortage seen in the market in recent times.

The meeting held under the chairmanship of Chief Secretary Govinda Bahadur Karki reviewed the reasons for shortage of cooking gas in the market and the role of concerned ministries, departments, industrialists and gas distribution entrepreneurs to resolve the issue.

During the discussions, the entrepreneurs said that there was no shortage of cooking gas as rumored in the market. Entrepreneurs said that the government had started distributing 14.2 kg LPG cylinders to ease the supply of gas after the conflict in West Asia. Traders said that more gas is being imported than before, but consumers are storing more than necessary, which is causing problems.

The meeting also decided to intensify the necessary coordination and management among the bodies concerned to make the distribution more effective, regular and smooth in the districts where there is problem in the supply.

The meeting also decided to make arrangements to import more than 50,000 metric tonnes LP gas every month for the next three months in view of the high demand during the upcoming Dashain and festivals. Chief Secretary Karki said that he would hold separate discussions with the stakeholders in the coming days to resolve the long-term problem of gas shortage.

Secretary at the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers Birendra Kumar Yadav, Secretary at the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies Narayan Prasad Sharma Duwadi, Joint Secretary at the Ministry of Home Affairs Suresh Panthi, Executive Director of Nepal Oil Corporation Deepak Baral, industrialists Krishna Bhakta Shrestha, Surendra Raj Poudyal, Amit Agrawal and Rudra Prasad Koirala were present on the occasion.