WWhen India’s first LPG cylinders made their way into Pune households seventy years ago, many considered them exotic objects. The supplier was Burmah Shell, which later became BPCL. The large metal canisters that produced a cool, blue flame seemed a luxury in a country that depends largely on firewood and crop residues for cooking. Kerosene stoves were a modern innovation at the time. Some feared what would become known many decades later as a mere cylinder. Delivery infrastructure was weak and LPG consumption growth remained tepid. Even before 2000, LPG was not the dominant cooking fuel, although the cylinder became a household name in towns and cities. The government’s plan has led to an increase in the use of LPG. This increase was due to imports from the Persian Gulf, which fell to zero when the conflict broke out in West Asia, disrupting Indian life that had not yet remembered the pandemic.
Hindu photographers have captured images of a population relearning to cook with energy reserves that are returning to the basics. Coal, firewood and everything in between. Restaurants have reduced items from their menus. Hostels in colleges and schools also cook meals that would be energy efficient, even if they are not the most popular. Induction cookers are selling like hotcakes. Meanwhile, two ships loaded with LPG have left the Persian Gulf and are heading to India. But they will deliver only two days of Indian imports. India needs at least one such ship to call its ports every day to get back to normalcy.
Lyrics by Dinesh Krishnan
Photo: Imran Nissar
Global crisis, local impact: People queue for LPG cylinders in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir due to shortage of supplies. Despite the government warning against panic buying, queues persist.
Photo: Jothi Ramalingam B.
Out of work: Amid fuel shortages due to war in West Asia, trucks delivering LPG cylinders from bottling plants to various parts of Tamil Nadu lie idle.
Photo: Shashi Shekhar Kashyap
Stock: People carry LPG cylinders home on their two-wheelers from a depot in New Delhi.
Photo: Sandeep Saxena
Coal comeback: Soft coal miners in Lucknow. As commercial users turn to alternative fuels, demand for coal has increased.
Photo: Thulasi Kakkat
Stoves defying scarcity: Firewood stoves are used after the LPG crisis at Samridhi@Kochi, a budget restaurant jointly run by Kochi Corporation and Ernakulam District Mission of Kudumbashree as part of an anti-hunger initiative in Kerala.
Photo: Sandeep Saxena
Back to basics: A worker unloading a traditional tandoori (coal/wood oven) from a delivery van in Lucknow.
Photo: Nirmal Harindran
Basic Commodity: A worker cutting wooden logs at a firewood shop in Neyyattinkara, Thiruvananthapuram. The price of firewood has risen exponentially with increased demand from hotels and households.
Photo: Nirmal Harindran
The Eternal Flame: The traditional kitchen in Neyyattinkara has used firewood for its cooking needs since its inception. The restaurant is patronized for its unique menu.
Photo: Murali Kumar K.
A crisis is brewing: A hotel in Bengaluru has drastically reduced its offerings to just coffee and tea. It used to offer a wide variety of snacks and meals.
Photo: Giri KVS
Fuel hunger: Members of a local NGO serve food to the poor and needy in Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh. Officials of the NGO say they will have to rely on firewood as they have run out of LPG cylinder.
Photo: Imran Nissar
Heart and hearth: A woman cooks on a traditional clay stove in Faqir Gujri on the outskirts of Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir.
Published – 15 March 2026 10:55 IST
