A severe shortage of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) has plunged thousands of households in Kolkata into a state of despair. For the past seven days, the city has been witnessing a massive disruption in gas supply, leaving residents unable to cook basic meals. The crisis has reached a point where many families are being forced to survive on parched rice (Chira) and puffed rice (Muri), as their kitchens remain dormant due to empty cylinders.

Reports from various parts of South and Central Kolkata suggest that even after multiple days of booking, consumers are not receiving their refills. Long queues at distributor offices have become a common sight, with frustrated citizens demanding answers. “It has been over a week since I booked my cylinder, but there is no sign of delivery. My electric heater also broke down yesterday, and now we are literally living on dry snacks,” lamented a resident of Gariahat.

Distributors have pointed toward a supply chain bottleneck, claiming that deliveries from bottling plants have significantly slowed down. While oil marketing companies maintain that there is no nationwide shortage, the ground reality in Kolkata tells a different story. Rumors of hoarding and black marketing are also surfacing, with allegations that domestic cylinders are being diverted to the commercial sector at premium prices, leaving the common man in the lurch.

The worst-hit are the elderly and lower-income families who do not have the luxury of alternative cooking methods like induction cooktops or microwaves. For them, the wait for a gas cylinder has become a struggle for survival. Public outcry is mounting, and there is an urgent demand for the state government and oil authorities to intervene and streamline the distribution process. If the backlog is not cleared within the next 48 hours, the situation could escalate into a major civic protest across the city.