CM raises LPG and APL wheat allotment issue with PM

Shimla, May 20 (UNI) Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal has requested Prime Minister Manmohan Singh not to ban the release of new LPG connections in Himachal Pradesh where people were solely dependent on the same for their cooking fuel necessities.

In a letter written to the Prime Minister, he said the state had already banned felling of green trees and no alternate fuel was available for domestic requirements of the people, who had already switched over to LPG consumption.

''The state has been contributing significantly in maintaining the ecological balance by preserving the forests. If the LPG is not made available to the consumers and the new connections of the same not released to the applicants, it would put pressure on the forests thereby affecting the green cover available in the state,'' he said.

Urging the Prime Minister to increase the wheat allotment quota under APL Scheme, the Chief Minister stated that the State had been demanding wheat allocation as per its requirement under APL scheme but had been supplied much lower quota.

Mr Dhumal said the state happened to be a consumer state since it needs to import essential commodities to meet its domestic requirements.

Mr Dhumal said the state had also demanded 1400 MT of imported Soya refined oil from the Centre which was still awaited.

Mr Dhumal urged the Prime Minister to expedite the supply so that the same was made available to about 14 lakh ration cardholders of the State.

UNI XC PS LPB HT2035