Mizoram Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs Minister John Rotluangliana today said that the present scarcity of cooking gas in the state was due to the efforts made by the state government and the Young Mizo Association (YMA) to provide unadulterated and tamper-free cooking gas to the general public.
Addressing the ruling party workers at the Congress Bhavan here, Rotluangliana said that some drivers tampered the gas cylinders while trying to earn extra money as they were underpaid.
He said that the present carrying contractors bid the tender at Rs 12 per kilometre while the earlier rate was Rs 17 per kilometre.
"The rate quoted by the present carrying contractors was not a workable rate forcing the contractors to pay minimum wages to their drivers which in turn force the latter to tamper the LPG," he said.
He said that the state government has already earmarked a land for establishment of a new Gas Bottling Plant at Sihhmui near Aizawl and the ball is now with the Indian Oil Corporation (IOC).
The Minister and the Congress government have been under severe attack from the opposition parties due to acute shortage of cooking gas in the last four months.
People could not find a gas cylinder even at the cost of Rs 3,000 in the black market due to acute scarcity.
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