Chandigarh/Amritsar/Ludhiana/Shimla/Bathinda/Patiala/Karnal, March 13 -- Long queues were seen at domestic LPG outlets across Punjab, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh amid panic buying triggered by fears of a gas shortage due to the West Asian crisis, even as the Centre and state governments maintained that there was no immediate supply crunch. Several restaurants and small eateries in the region also flagged a shortage of commercial cylinders, warning that they may be forced to shut down if the situation does not improve. Many have switched to alternative sources such as electric or coal- and wood-fired tandoors to keep their kitchens running. Kulwinder Singh, who runs a dhaba near Transport Nagar in Ludhiana, said that he has run out of LPG and has shifted to alternate means to keep the operations running. "We are using coal and wood tandoors to cook food. We are facing problems in keeping the food warm and are brewing tea on tandoor. If the problem persists, I would be forced to shut down," he said. In Shimla, a tourist hotspot, a small dhaba owner said the crisis is unprecedented, something he hasn't seen before. "I have just one cylinder in stock if the supply doesn't arrive, I will be forced to close down. Our entire kitchen runs on gas. We have only one cylinder left and once that finishes we will have to shut down. We urge the government to provide at least two to three cylinders a month so that we can remain open," said Pasanda Sharma, who has been running the dhaba in Chotta Shimla since 1982. Sharma added that many eateries have already stopped preparing certain food items in order to conserve gas. Yoginder Pal, who works as a cook at a local dhaba in Shimla said, "If the dhaba shuts down what will I do to earn my livelihood." Shyam Sharma, manager of Shere-Punjab Dhaba, said the tourist season is upon us and this crisis will be bad for the entire hospitality sector of the state. "Commercial cylinders have not been supplied for the past three days. Tourists are coming, and staff also need to eat," he added. Anshu Sharma, manager at a restaurant in Haryana's Kurukshetra said they have already started exploring alternative options like coal, induction and microwave, if the situation doesn't improve. In Patiala several domestic consumers complained of shortage of LPG cylinders. Even though, the district administration maintained that there is no shortage of LPG cylinders, Binder Ram, a resident of Churason village located around 25 km from the city, said he had been struggling to get a cylinder for the past two days. "There is a lot of inconvenience. I have been trying to get an LPG cylinder but to no avail. Yesterday, I managed to get a booking receipt from the agency after standing in a queue for the entire day. Today, when I was supposed to get the cylinder, I was informed that it will come tomorrow," he said. Rajesh Kumar, who travelled nearly 40km from Magarsa village in a hope to get a cylinder in Patiala city, said common people were bearing the brunt of the situation. "Whenever there is a crisis, it is people like us (common) who end up standing in long queues. The booking app is not working properly, so we first have to visit the agency to book the cylinder and then wait for days to get it," he said. Ishaan Sharma, standing outside a gas agency near Hansi Chowk in Haryana's Karnal since 8 am said that even after waiting for four hours, there was no clarity if he will get a cylinder or not. Similarly, Sakshi Bhatnagar, a local resident said that she booked a cylinder on Tuesday, but was yet to receive any OTP, which has to be shared during the delivery. The district authorities in Bathinda and the adjoining districts said they have increased vigilance against hoarding and blackmailing of the cooking gas intended for domestic subscribers on Thursday. Bathinda and Faridkot deputy commissioners Rajesh Dhiman and Punamdeep Kaur said teams have been formed to ensure a smooth supply of the gas and deter hoarding or creating panic. Mohammad Amin, divisional LPG sales head, Indian Oil Corporation, while reiterating that there is no shortage for domestic customers, said, "People are doing panic booking which has increased the load on the server which is now down." Amin said that the supply of domestic liquified petroleum gas cylinders from Baddi, Una and Jalandhar bottling plants is continuing as before, and 19 kg commercial cylinders are being supplied to hospitals and educational institutions, but the supply of 47 kg and 425 kg commercial cylinders for industry has been disrupted. Amid disruption in supply, Dayanand Medical College and Hospital (DMCH), Ludhiana, issued fresh directions to mess contractors to rationalise the use of cooking gas in its kitchens. In a letter addressed to all mess contractors, Dr Sandeep Sharma, medical superintendent said the measures aims to optimise LPG consumption while ensuring that the quality and adequacy of food served to students remain unaffected. According to the advisory, certain changes have been suggested in the daily menu and cooking practices. Sandwiches may be served in place of paranthas in some meals to reduce cooking time and gas consumption. Mess contractors have been asked to replace certain food items which require long preparation time such as rajmah, maah, white chana and black chana from the menu. Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann and his Himachal Pradesh counterpart Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said that the governments are alert and closely monitoring the situation to ensure that people do not face any difficulty in accessing essential commodities. Haryana minister of state for food and civil supplies Rajesh Nagar also said that the supply of petrol, diesel and domestic LPG in the state is completely normal.On Thursday, petroleum minister Hardeep Puri said it is the foremost priority of the government that the kitchens of over 33 crore families, especially the poor and the underprivileged, do not face any shortage of gas....