'RIL should supply shortfall in gas production at old rates'

CPI leader Gurudas Dasgupta today demanded that the government should "insist" that Reliance Industries Limited should supply the shortfall in gas production at the old rates.
Claiming that the Petroleum Ministry has "revised its earlier stand", he said it "has now circulated a Cabinet note to the effect that RIL shouldn't get revised price on gas till the reasons for the fall in output are ascertained.
"It is further learnt that the Petroleum Ministry has proposed that if it reaches the conclusion that the fall was due to geological difficulties, then they would be allowed the benefit of the price increase to RIL."

In a letter to the Prime Minister, Dasgupta said Petroleum Minister M Veerappa Moily had formulated the Cabinet note "in this fashion" that has "again exposed his duplicity".
"You would recall that the government has consistently rejected the contention of RIL that the shortfall is due to geological difficulty," Dasgupta said in the letter.
"I earnestly reiterate that the government insist that RIL supply the shortfall in gas production at the old rates," he said and demanded reconsideration of the decision to raise price of natural gas.
He said such a decision should be kept "in abeyance until these issues are openly debated with all stakeholders", including the Power and Fertiliser Ministries.

In June-end, the government had approved a doubling of natural gas prices from April 2014 with its opponents saying it would lead to a hike in power tariff, increase fertiliser costs and make CNG transportation more expensive.