VASCO
Amid rising concerns over cooking fuel availability, Goa State Congress SC Department President Vithu Mahadev Morajkar on Tuesday appealed the civil supplies department to restart kerosene distribution through fair price shops.
Interacting with media persons, Morajkar said households across the State are facing increasing difficulty in booking LPG cylinders, adding that the situation has created uncertainty in managing daily cooking needs.
He pointed out the stark price difference between LPG and kerosene, stressing its impact on economically weaker sections.
“An LPG cylinder today costs around Rs 930, which must be paid in one go. In contrast, kerosene earlier cost roughly Rs 20 per litre, and a consumer allotted five litres could purchase it in smaller quantities based on their financial capacity ” even two or three litres at a time,” he said, adding that this flexibility had now been completely removed.
Criticising the government’s decision to declare Goa a kerosene-free state, Morajkar said the move was taken without adequate groundwork.
“It is unclear whether any proper study or data supported this decision. While the Union Government rolled out the Ujjwala scheme, kerosene supply has not been entirely stopped across India,” he said.
He noted that states like Maharashtra and Karnataka have only partially reduced kerosene distribution, while states such as West Bengal continue supplying it.
He further said that the complete stoppage of kerosene in Goa has adversely affected rural and low-income households that relied on it as a supplementary cooking fuel.
“This has created serious issues in rural areas where people depended on kerosene for their daily needs,” he said.
He also recalled that earlier, around 18 fair price shops in each taluka were involved in kerosene distribution, along with local shopkeepers, ensuring easy accessibility. However, he claimed that neither fair price shops nor dealers received formal written communication regarding the discontinuation.
“Despite declaring Goa as kerosene-free, there has been no proper official communication from the government or oil companies,” he said.
