‘The Situation is Dire’: Hostilities on Iran Tightens India's Cooking-Gas Availability.

The ripple effects of a war being fought nearly 3,000km away are now being felt in India's kitchens.

As US-Israeli strikes on Iran impede energy deliveries through the vital shipping lane, availability of cooking gas are tightening across India, pushing restaurants to reduce offerings, close earlier and in some cases close completely.

Social media is filled with video clips showing queues outside fuel suppliers across Indian urban and rural areas as anxieties over fuel supplies grow. Commercial LPG users appear the most affected: the sharpest squeeze is in food service establishments.

"Conditions are critical. Kitchen fuel simply cannot be found," says a official of the a major restaurant body.

Most restaurants run either on commercial LPG cylinders or direct gas lines, and the lack of supply are now being felt across the country. "Numerous restaurants have closed - some in northern India, many in the southern states. People are turning to solid fuels and electronic appliances to keep kitchens going."

Regional Impact

In a financial hub, media reports say up to a fifth of hospitality businesses are already operating at reduced capacity as cylinder availability dry up. In the southern cities of Bengaluru and Chennai, some establishments say their fuel reserves have dwindled with scarce alternatives. "We can only make coffee and no food items - it is nothing less than pathetic. Commerce will take a hit," says a restaurant owner in Bengaluru.

Restaurant managers are seeking alternatives. "Menus are being curtailed, some are opening only for dinner and reducing hours," an industry representative says, adding that shutdowns are fluctuating as supplies come and go. "Three restaurants in Delhi were shut yesterday - some have resumed operations. It's a changing landscape."

Retailers note a spike in sales of electric cookers, with some saying they are running out of them.

Authority's View

Yet, the government insists there is sufficient stock.

India has more than 30 crore household consumers and officials say supplies are being prioritized to households as tensions from the war in the Gulf affect energy markets.

About six out of ten of India's LPG is brought in from overseas, and about nine out of ten of those consignments pass through the critical waterway, the narrow Gulf chokepoint now significantly disrupted by the conflict.

The petroleum ministry says that it instructed refineries to maximise LPG output for home needs, lifting domestic production by about a quarter. Non-domestic supply is being allocated for vital industries such as medical and academic centers, while distribution will be "fair and transparent".

"Unnecessary hoarding and accumulation has been sparked by false reports. The normal delivery cycle for household cylinders remains about under three days," says a ministry representative.

Growing Panic

Now the anxiety is extending beyond kitchens. On social media, a widely shared video from Chennai shows a lengthy, winding line of two-wheelers outside a gas outlet. "Anxiety is palpable," the caption reads.

According to data from industry analysts, concerns about India's broader fuel supplies may be exaggerated.

India imports 90% of its oil. Around half of its oil purchases - about millions of barrels a day - travel through the strait, largely from regional suppliers.

Even if petroleum transit through the Strait of Hormuz are blocked, the shortfall could be partly compensated for by higher imports of Russian petroleum, according to a refinery and oil markets analyst.

Based on shipping data and industry information, additional Russian crude imports could reach around a significant volume of barrels a day, reducing India's effective shortfall from exposure to the Strait of Hormuz to about a substantial volume of barrels a day.

"A large quantity of Russian oil barrels are currently on the water in the Indian Ocean and, with only India and China as major buyers, those barrels remain a ready fallback," an analyst noted.

Kitchen Fuel: The Primary Concern

The key weakness is LPG, analysts say.

India consumes roughly a million barrels a day, but produces only less than half domestically, importing the rest - most of it through the Strait.

Refineries can tweak operations to extract a bit more LPG, but even a limited rise would only lift domestic supply to about around half of demand, leaving the country largely dependent on imports.

In short: "Petroleum shortage concerns can be partially mitigated through diversification. Processed petroleum stocks remains relatively comfortable. Kitchen fuel stocks is the critical issue to track in the coming weeks."

What may be intensifying the anxiety on the ground is not just tight supply but patchy deliveries - and the common threat of panic buying.

An industry representative alleges price gouging.

"Distributors are taking advantage of the situation - illegally trading canisters and selling them at a inflated price. In one small town, I heard of cylinders being accumulated and sold to the highest bidder."

For now, India's energy imports may be cushioned by worldwide shipping. But in homes across the country, the more immediate question is simple: how to get the next gas canister.