Ahmedabad: Piped Natural Gas (PNG) has been declared an essential commodity under the Essential Commodities Act, and ensuring its continuous, safe, and reliable supply has become a priority amid the ongoing LPG supply challenges. In Ahmedabad, PNG is currently supplied by Adani Gas, Gujarat Gas, and Sabarmati Gas Company, and authorities have decided to give preference to PNG connections over LPG in view of the present global situation affecting fuel supplies.

To strengthen the City Gas Distribution (CGD) network, the three gas agencies submitted a total of 820 applications for Road Opening Permits (ROP) to lay new PNG pipelines across different zones of Ahmedabad. The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) has granted approval for all the applications to speed up the expansion of PNG infrastructure.

AMC has also issued special administrative instructions to accelerate the work. Approval powers for roads where the defect-liability period has been completed have been given to the Additional City Engineer of the respective zone, while in cases where the defect-liability period is still ongoing, permission will be granted by the Deputy Municipal Commissioner of the zone.

As a special measure, permission has been granted to carry out pipeline work without charging the usual road-cutting fees, and agencies have been allowed to undertake minimum excavation even on roads under defect liability. Although the pipeline-laying agencies will bear the cost, road reinstatement work after excavation will be carried out by AMC to ensure quality and faster restoration.

Meanwhile, the civic body has also initiated steps to shift commercial users from LPG to PNG. A meeting was held with hotel and restaurant associations in the city, urging them to switch to PNG connections. The associations have responded positively and assured that establishments currently using LPG will gradually convert to PNG. DeshGujarat