Restaurants, hotels face severe shortages in commercial LPG supply

Shortage of commercial LPG cylinders in Coimbatore has forced hotels to rework the menus and service timings | Photo Credit: PERIASAMY M

The West Asia conflict has caused commercial LPG shortages, disrupting operations at restaurants and hotels nationwide. Businesses are shrinking menus and hours as the industry calls for urgent government intervention on LPG supplies.

The Federation of Hotel & Restaurant Associations of India (FHRAI), Vice-President, Pradeep Shetty, warned that severe LPG shortages are being seen across major cities and states. With no viable alternatives, the industry urgently needs restored supplies to avoid widespread shutdowns. Shetty said severe shortages are being reported in Maharashtra, specifically in Mumbai, where nearly 50 per cent of hotels and restaurants are fearing temporary closure if situation does not improve in the next two days, Pune, Aurangabad, as well as in states including Karnataka, Telangana, and Andhra Pradesh.

Pranav Rungta, Vice-President, National Restaurant Association of India (NRAI), said the effort is to get the authorities to recognise the restaurant industry as “essential supply.” This is an unprecedented crisis for the industry that generates ₹2,000 crore daily,” he said.

On Tuesday, NRAI in an advisory outlined various suggestions for its members ranging from rationalising menus to introducing limited “crisis menus” with faster-cooking items and limiting operational hours to peak hours only, among others.

Menu cuts

Coimbatore’s Annapoorna Hotels is restricting its iconic all-day dosas to breakfast and dinner as LPG stocks thin and new bookings are halted. “We have limited stock and we have reduced our menu offerings and also the availability timings,” said a hotel employee. The hotel said that from tomorrow, they will also be trimming their menu on Swiggy and Zomato. “High-gas items like dosa and poori are leaving the menu in favour of idli and sandwiches,” said a Chennai-based restaurant owner.

Sharda Bhavan restaurant in Matunga, Mumbai, has stopped serving onion uttapam and rava dosas as these take longer to cook. “We have almost run out of gas and will use electric induction stoves,” said its owner, Ganesh Rao.

In a letter, Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah warned Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri that Bengaluru’s hotels may temporarily shut down unless LPG supplies are restored.

Meanwhile, industry bodies Telangana Gig and Platform Workers’ Union and the Indian Federation of App-Based Transport Workers cautioned that disruptions in LPG and CNG supplies could affect drivers and delivery workers dependent on platforms like Swiggy, Zomato, Uber and Rapido for their daily income.

Published on March 10, 2026