In the midst of Pakistan’s growing energy crisis, many families have turned to liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) as a necessary alternative. However, this solution has come with a deadly cost. Recent tragedies have made one thing brutally clear: LPG filling shops have no place in residential areas.
Gas cylinders are pressurised, flammable, and prone to catastrophic failure when mishandled. When operated without proper safety protocols (as is common in unregulated neighbourhood shops) they pose a severe risk not just to users, but to entire communities. A single spark in one of these shops can become a blazing inferno within seconds, endangering lives, property, and rescue efforts.
The use of gas cylinders is only increasing due to gas load-shedding, but that cannot justify placing high-risk businesses next to homes, schools, and grocery stores. What we need is not just regulation, but relocation. These shops must be moved to safer, designated industrial zones equipped with proper safety infrastructure.
This is not merely a technical or administrative issue; it is a matter of public safety and human dignity. We cannot continue to normalise the presence of explosive hazards where children play, and families sleep.
While regulatory bodies like OGRA play a key role in certifying cylinder quality and ensuring technical compliance, their oversight cannot reach every street corner. Enforcement alone cannot guarantee safety when high-risk LPG filling activities are embedded in densely populated areas. A zero-tolerance policy is urgently needed because public safety must never be left to chance or a shopkeeper’s caution.
Even a minor oversight, like a loose valve or an expired cylinder, can result in devastating consequences for entire communities. Relocating LPG operations from residential zones to designated industrial or commercial areas may cause temporary discomfort, but the long-term benefits are immeasurable. It’s about safeguarding lives, reducing everyday risks, and reclaiming our neighbourhoods as spaces of safety.
Convenience can be replaced; lives cannot. The state must act decisively, not reactively, before another preventable tragedy leaves yet more families shattered and grieving.
Dr Intikhab Ulfat
Karachi
