ONKAR SINGH / NEW DELHI
Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas Dharmendra Pradhan on Friday inaugurated and dedicated to nation, 56 CNG stations spread over 11 States and Union Territories. These stations are in Gujarat, Haryana, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, New Delhi, Punjab, Rajasthan, Telangana and Uttar Pradesh.
Lauding the efforts of all the stakeholders in expansion of the gas network in the country, Mr Pradhan said that 72 per cent population of the country will soon be covered through the City Gas Distribution network, with spread over 53 per cent of the geographical area. He said that the country is moving towards gas based economy.
The number of PNG stations has gone up from 25 lakh to 60 lakh and number of CNG vehicles has gone up from 22 lakh to 34 lakh. He said that it is a matter of satisfaction that besides the Public sector, private companies are whole-heartedly taking part in the expansion of gas infrastructure in the country.
The Minister said that the government is working on energy efficiency, affordability, security and accessibility. He envisioned that, the customers will soon have to go to only one place, where all types of fuels- Petrol, diesel, CNG, LNG and LPG will be made available. He said the Government has already started mobile dispensers for diesel, and would like to expand for petrol and LNG.