Ban fails to curb LPG blasts

Use of substandard cylinders in public transport is a cause of frequent accidents

LAHORE:

Accidents caused by liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cylinder explosions are on the rise in the province because of the failure of the authorities concerned to curb hazardous use of the fuel.

While the use of cheap LPG appears to be beneficial for the citizens, illegal use of substandard cylinders in rickshaws, vans and other public transport vehicles causes frequent accidents, resulting in a large number of casualties. The accidents caused a large number of casualties across Punjab in recent years.

OGRA, the district administration and other departments investigate every such accident but have so far failed to take adequate steps to prevent more such mishaps in the province.

There is only one authorised LPG filling station in Lahore, but it is closed because of restrictions imposed by the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA).

According to Rescue 1122, there have been at least 33 LPG explosions in Lahore during the past two years, in which more than 20 people lost their lives and over 300 others were injured, including many with severe burns.

Read The endless spiral of gas cylinder explosions

Many transporters use compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders instead of those specified for LPG.

In the latest accident, a fire caused by gas leakage from an LPG cylinder in a van after a collision near Shahkot in Gujranwala cost 11 lives.

After the accident, OGRA, police, the provincial transport department and the district administration carried out investigations, but no action has been reported in view of the findings. A large number of earlier deadly accidents also did not prompt any effective legal action.

It is estimated that gas filling is carried out at more than 5,000 small and large LPG shops in Lahore without ensuring safety measures. LPG is allegedly being used illegally in more than 60% of transport vehicles in the city.

OGRA has banned the use of LPG in transport vehicles but it is cheaper than petroleum and CNG and thus more profitable for the transporters.

That is why more than 225,000 rickshaws and other public transport vehicles in Lahore reportedly use LPG instead of CNG and petroleum.

OGRA had given its powers to the district government to take action against violators of the ban, but no major crackdown has been launched.

Speaking to The Express Tribune, Irfan Khokhar, founding chairman of the LPG Distributors Association, said he had staged a sit-in on July 31 against the producers of substandard cylinders and demanded action against them by OGRA and the district administration.

Whenever a cylinder explodes, the district administration and OGRA try to shift the blame upon each other, he alleged.

Khokhar said the government and OGRA had made very strict laws but they were not implemented.

He said the LPG policy needed to be changed. It costs about Rs500 million to install an LPG station and the required pieces of land measuring three kanals are not available along the main roads of Lahore, or are very expensive. He said there was only one LPG station in Lahore, near Pakistan Mint, but it was closed due to OGRA’s ban on the use of fuel in transport vehicles.

Rickshaws and taxi owners now fill LPG from informal outlets without any precautionary measures.

Khokhar said OGRA should consider issuing licences to install LPG dispensers at CNG stations.

Accidents can be avoided if standard equipment is installed and immediate action is taken against unlicensed filling of LPG, he added.

When contacted, OGRA spokesman Imran Ghaznavi said taking action against manufacturers and users of substandard LPG cylinders was the responsibility of the provincial and district administrations.

He said action had been taken against the company involved in a recent accident and it had been made to pay compensation to the families of the victims.

He said OGRA was fulfilling its responsibility of implementing the government policy.

The spokesperson said a new LPG policy was ready and would be implemented after approval.

According to Sajjad Shah, a leader of transporters, CNG and petrol are expensive and the gas is often unavailable, so the vehicle owners are forced to use LPG. He said the producers of substandard cylinders were responsible for the accidents.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 17^th, 2021.