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The war that is undergoing in West Asia has started an LPG crisis in India, where there has been a reported shortening of operations in restaurants and panic buying of cylinders being reported all over India. Over 90 percent of India's approximately 20.5 million metric tons of annual LPG imports are obtained from West Asian producers—the majority of the imports are channeled via the Strait of Hormuz.

The government has put domestic households as the first priority, pausing commercial LPG cylinder supplies to hotels/restaurants and other businesses, which have not been exempted in a number of cities. There has also been the introduction of a minimum two-week interval between the refilling of the cylinders between two books to control supply and to avoid black marketing. 

In a legally binding directive issued on March 24, 2026, under the Natural Gas and Petroleum Products Distribution Order, 2026, whatever infrastructure exists where a household or commercial establishment may use it, the government ordered all households and commercial establishments to use it as an alternative to LPG instead of piped natural gas within a compliance period of 90 days. 

The consumption of LPG in India declined drastically by 13 percent in March compared to that recorded in March last year, as both household and commercial LPG consumers were affected nationwide by disruptions to supply caused by conflict in West Asia.

The gas crisis is not dead yet—and India has never been more vulnerable in its energy suppliers.