Over 5,500 LPG tankers strike in South India; OMCs call protest illegal

File photo of LPG tanker lorries in Chennai
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Over 5,500 LPG bulk carriers have been off the road since Thursday night, urging oil marketing companies to award contracts to all eligible vehicles and protesting the alleged misuse of the SC/ST reservation system in the tender process.

Vehicles belonging to The Southern Region Bulk LPG Transport Owners Association, which is based in Namakkal in Tamil Nadu, stopped plying from Thursday night.

Under the new contract with oil companies, the LPG bulk carriers transport oil for companies on a new five-year contract. However, due to the new regulations, nearly 700 vehicles have lost contracts and are idle. The association urged the companies to provide trips to all the vehicles, said sources.

A statement from IndianOil on behalf of the Oil Marketing Companies termed the strike as illegal and initiated without any prior intimation. The companies assured uninterrupted LPG supplies across the southern region.

The oil companies said that LPG supplies across South India remain normal and unhindered. Sufficient stocks of LPG are currently available at all bottling plants and with Indane, Bharat Gas, and HP Gas distributors to meet the ongoing festive demand for customers.

Published on October 10, 2025