Govt assures adequate LPG, fertiliser supply; Indian sailors safe in Oman incident

The government on Monday said supplies of LPG and fertilisers remain adequate across the country while also confirming that Indian sailors involved in a recent maritime incident near Oman are safe. The updates were shared during an inter-ministerial media briefing. 

LPG supply stable, says Petroleum Ministry 

Sujata Sharma, Joint Secretary in the Petroleum Ministry, said the allocation of commercial LPG has been increased by up to 70% to meet demand. She said panic buying was still being reported at certain distributorships, but assured that there was no shortage of supply. 

“We have adequate supply of LPG and there is no dry out at any distributor. Ninety-three per cent of LPG cylinder deliveries are being done through the authentication code,” Sharma said. 

She added that more than 1,65,000 tonnes of commercial LPG had been sold so far in April. 

Indian sailors safe after tanker incident near Oman 

Mandeep Singh Randhawa, Director in the Ministry of Shipping, said a Togo-flagged chemical tanker, MT Siron, was boarded by individuals at the Shinas Outer Port limits in Oman on April 25. 

The vessel, which included Indian sailors on board, was near other ships when the Iranian Coast Guard intervened and fired warning shots. “All Indian sailors are safe, and no Indian-flagged vessel has been affected,” Randhawa said. 

He added that the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways is coordinating with the Ministry of External Affairs, Indian missions, and maritime stakeholders to ensure the safety of seafarers and continuity of operations. 

Over the last 24 hours, the DG Shipping control room handled 7,780 calls and 16,650 emails while maintaining communication with 2,770 Indian ships, of which 12 reported updates. “The situation is under close watch, with no cause for concern at present,” he said. 

India expands Gulf outreach 

MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said India has continued to expand diplomatic outreach in the Gulf region under the direction of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. 

He said National Security Advisor Ajit Doval visited the UAE on April 25 and 26, where he met the UAE President and conveyed the Prime Minister’s greetings. Both sides discussed measures to deepen the India-UAE Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, along with the regional situation and other issues of mutual interest. 

Jaiswal noted that this was the second high-level Indian visit to the UAE within a month, following External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar’s visit on April 11 and 12. 

Fertiliser stocks higher than requirement 

Aparna Sharma, Additional Secretary in the Department of Fertilizers, said fertiliser availability remains robust and supplies continue to exceed national requirements. She said no shortages had been reported across any major fertiliser category. 

For the period from April 1 to April 26, 2026, urea availability stood at 71.58 lakh metric tonnes (LMT) against a requirement of 18.17 LMT, while DAP availability was 22.35 LMT against a requirement of 5.90 LMT. 

“The fertiliser security is strong, stable, and well managed, with availability consistently exceeding the requirement across all major fertilisers,” she added.