LPG Shortage Affecting Railway Catering: India is affected by the ongoing war between Iran and Israel and the gas reserves in the country are very limited. Due to shortage of gas cylinders, the government has stopped the supply of cylinders to hoteliers. Therefore, it has become difficult to cook food in hotels, restaurants, messes in big cities. As the shortage of LPG cylinders has started to be felt, it has now also started affecting the catering services of the railways. Therefore, there is a possibility of a temporary break in the service of cooked meals in trains operated by the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC).
The railway administration is currently considering this option. If such time comes, passengers who have already booked meals while booking tickets can be refunded. According to railway officials, the shortage of LPG is directly affecting IRCTC’s base kitchens. LPG Shortage Affecting Railway Catering
It is in this kitchen that large quantities of food are prepared for long-distance trains and then loaded into pantry cars. Pantry cars in trains are mainly used for distribution and reheating of meals. They do not carry LPG cylinders themselves. Hence, if the LPG supply to the base kitchen is interrupted, it may become difficult to prepare live meals.
According to railway officials, about 1.7 lakh meals are served to passengers every day across the country through IRCTC’s network. About 20 percent of these meals are distributed in the western region. So, if the LPG shortage continues, it may affect the western region the most.
A senior railway official said that the situation is critical at present and is likely to worsen in the near future. According to him, the catering service in the trains is completely dependent on the food prepared in the base kitchen of IRCTC. So any disruption in LPG supply directly affects both food preparation and supply to trains. LPG Shortage Affecting Railway Catering
The railway administration has already raised the issue before the board and suggested possible solutions. If the shortage of gas cylinders persists, the option of temporarily suspending the service of cooked meals in trains is also under consideration. In such cases, a full refund will be given to passengers who have already booked meals at the time of reservation. However, the final decision and authority to issue official guidelines rests with the Railway Board.
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