‘The Situation is Dire’: Hostilities on Iran Constricts India's LPG Stock.

The ripple effects of a military engagement being fought nearly 3,000km away are now reaching India's homes.

As US-Israeli strikes on Iran disrupt energy deliveries through the vital shipping lane, stocks of cooking gas are dwindling across India, pushing restaurants to cut menus, reduce operating times and in some cases close completely.

Social media is awash with video clips showing lines outside fuel suppliers across Indian urban and rural areas as concerns over fuel supplies escalate. Restaurant kitchens appear the most affected: the sharpest squeeze is in commercial eateries.

"The state of affairs is alarming. Cooking gas simply is unavailable," says a spokesperson of the National Restaurant Association of India.

Most restaurants run either on business-grade gas tanks or pipeline-supplied fuel, and the shortages are now being noticed across the country. "Many restaurants have shut down - some in Delhi, many in the south. People are switching to traditional burners and electric cookers to keep food preparation going."

City-Specific Fallout

In a western metro, local news say up to a significant portion of hotels and restaurants are already operating at reduced capacity as cylinder availability dwindle. In the southern cities of Bengaluru and Chennai, some eateries say their gas stocks have depleted with scarce alternatives. "Our menu is reduced to coffee and no other dishes - it is extremely difficult. Businesses are going to suffer," says a chain proprietor in Bengaluru.

Restaurant managers are scrambling to adapt. "Menus are being curtailed, some are skipping midday meals and opening only for dinner," an industry representative says, adding that closures are varying as supplies wax and wane. "A number of eateries in Delhi were shut yesterday - a couple are back in business. It's a fluid situation."

Retailers note a surge in sales of induction stoves, with some saying they are selling out quickly.

Official Position

Yet, the government maintains there is sufficient stock.

India has more than 30 crore household consumers and officials say supplies are being redirected to households as geopolitical strain from the Middle East conflict impact energy markets.

Roughly six out of ten of India's LPG is brought in from overseas, and about 90% of those imports pass through the critical waterway, the strategic bottleneck now effectively closed by the conflict.

The relevant department says that it instructed refineries to increase LPG output for home needs, raising domestic production by about a quarter. Commercial stock is being reserved for vital industries such as healthcare and education, while distribution will be "just and open".

"A degree of anxious stocking and hoarding has been caused by false reports. The normal delivery cycle for domestic LPG remains about two-and-a-half days," says a ministry representative.

Spreading Anxiety

Now the concern is moving beyond kitchens. On online networks, a widely shared video from Chennai shows a extended procession of two-wheelers outside a fuel station. "Concern is genuine," the description reads.

According to analysis from market experts, concerns about India's broader petroleum stocks may be exaggerated.

India imports the overwhelming majority of its crude oil. Around 50% of its petroleum shipments - about 2.5 to 2.7 million barrels a day - travel through the strait, largely from Gulf countries.

Even if crude flows through the Strait of Hormuz are hindered, the gap could be partly offset by higher imports of competitively priced oil from Russia, according to a sector expert.

Based on shipping data and expert analysis, incremental Russian crude imports could reach around a significant volume of barrels a day, lessening India's effective shortfall from exposure to the Strait of Hormuz to about 1.6 million barrels a day.

"Tens of millions of Russian oil barrels are currently floating on ships in the Indian Ocean and, with only two major Asian economies as major buyers, those barrels remain a ready fallback," an analyst noted.

LPG: The Real Vulnerability

The primary concern is LPG, analysts say.

India consumes roughly 1 million barrels a day, but produces only a minority share domestically, importing the rest - most of it through the chokepoint.

Refineries can adjust processes to produce a bit more LPG, but even a limited rise would only raise domestic supply to about under half of demand, leaving the country significantly leaning on imports.

In short: "Petroleum shortage concerns can be somewhat alleviated through diversification. Fuel availability remains relatively comfortable. Kitchen fuel stocks is the critical issue to watch in the coming weeks."

What may be intensifying the anxiety on the ground is not just scarcity but patchy deliveries - and the usual problem of hoarding.

An industry representative claims exploitative practices.

"Distributors are misusing the situation - black-marketing cylinders and selling them at a premium. In one small town, I heard of cylinders being hoarded and sold to the highest bidder."

For now, India's energy imports may be protected by international market dynamics. But in restaurants across the country, the more pressing concern is simple: how to get the next refill.