Indian Households Continue to Pay Lowest LPG Prices Globally Despite Volatile Global Energy Markets
The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas announced that Indian households continue to receive cooking gas at among the lowest prices globally, even after a recent ₹29 increase brought the retail price of a 14.2-kg domestic LPG cylinder to ₹942 in Delhi. The price adjustment was necessitated by a sharp 46% surge in the international Saudi CP benchmark for LPG between February and June, driven largely by ongoing disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz that tightened Gulf supply and pushed the actual cost of supplying a single cylinder over ₹1,600. Despite this volatility, the Central Government has heavily subsidized the commodity, absorbing a substantial part of the increase to shield citizens. General consumers buy at a 45% discount relative to international cost, while beneficiaries of the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) receive an effective 60% discount—paying just ₹642 per cylinder for their first four annual refills after a ₹300 direct benefit transfer.
The government emphasized that the resulting domestic LPG rates remain significantly lower than those in neighboring nations like Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka, and stand far below the prices paid in advanced economies such as the United States, Australia, and Canada. To guarantee uninterrupted availability across the country during the global supply strain, domestic LPG production at Indian refineries was aggressively accelerated by over 60%. Furthermore, state oil marketing companies successfully diversified their import logistics, sourcing additional stock from alternative suppliers including the United States, Canada, and Algeria. Assuring the public that bottling and distribution systems are operating normally with healthy reserve levels, the ministry confirmed there is no fuel shortage and requested consumers to follow normal purchasing patterns rather than panic buying.
