A severe LPG (cooking gas) crisis has hit Gujarat, the home state of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, leaving millions of households in distress. Despite daily assurances from the Central Government regarding sufficient fuel supplies, the ground reality in Gujarat is starkly different. From urban hubs like Ahmedabad to industrial belts in Surat, people are seen waiting in agonizingly long queues for a single cylinder—a sight that has triggered haunting memories of the desperate hunt for oxygen during the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The crisis has hit the migrant labor population the hardest. Thousands of laborers from Bihar, UP, and Bengal, who work in Gujarat’s diamond and textile industries, are now facing starvation. With no gas to cook and the rising cost of outside food, many have decided to abandon their jobs and return to their native villages. Railway stations and bus terminals are witnessing a massive surge in homeward-bound crowds, reminiscent of the painful mass migration seen during the 2020 lockdown.

Gas agencies claim that there is a massive bottleneck in the supply chain from the bottling plants, causing a waiting period of over three weeks for a single booking. While black-marketing is allegedly on the rise, the common man is left to suffer. “We were promised a digital and developed India, but today we are fighting for a basic cooking cylinder on the streets,” lamented a local resident. As the energy crisis deepens, the political heat is rising in the state, with the opposition questioning the efficiency of the “Double Engine” government in managing essential commodities.