Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar:
As the supply of gas and crude oil from Gulf countries has been disrupted due to the ongoing war, the central government has decided to stop the supply of commercial gas. In this backdrop, around 2,800 industries and nearly 920 hotels in the city are likely to shut down within the next two days, the Chamber of Marathwada Industries and Agriculture (CMIA) informed during a press conference on Tuesday.
Amid the war situation in the Gulf region, the central government had decided on March 5 to suspend domestic commercial gas supply. Since then, gas companies have stopped accepting new registrations for commercial gas connections. This has begun to affect industrial units and hotel businesses.
In this context, a meeting of industrialists and the hotel association was held on Tuesday at the CMIA hall in Bajaj Bhavan. After the meeting, industrialists interacted with the media. If production stops due to the gas shortage, contract workers may face unemployment.
CMIA president Utsav Machhar said that several industries use LPG or LNG gas for production. The gas stock available with most companies is expected to be exhausted within two days. As a result, many industries have already had to reduce production by 40 to 60 per cent.
The government on Tuesday issued a circular directing that 80 per cent gas supply be provided to LNG users, which offers some relief to industries. However, there is still no clarity regarding industries that rely on LPG gas. If the gas supply is not restored soon, industries across all categories small, medium and large may shut down within the next few days.
Nearly 920 hotels may shut
Hotel Association representative Harpreet Singh Nirh said that the decision to stop gas supply to hotels is incorrect. The existing gas stock is almost exhausted. As a result, around 920 establishments, including small and large hotels, restaurants and dhabas in the city, may shut down.
Two companies of Nihar Group shut
The Nihar Group, which operates seven units in Waluj, supplies spare parts for two-wheelers and three-wheelers to companies such as Bajaj Auto, Mahindra & Mahindra, Honda, TVS and Toyota.
Group general manager A. K. Sengupta said their units require about one metric tonne of gas, but the supply has been disrupted for the past four days, forcing two of the group’s companies to halt production.