Long queues of auto-rickshaws outside LPG dispensing stations and domestic consumers at local gas agency offices were seen on Thursday (March 12, 2026) in Kolkata and several districts of West Bengal, as government assurances failed to calm panic buying that has sharply pushed up demand for cooking gas amid supply disruptions linked to the West Asia conflict.

Auto drivers said they were waiting for hours — and in some cases since the previous night — to refill LPG at pumps, while household consumers queued up outside gas distributor offices after online booking systems failed or remained inaccessible due to heavy traffic-induced server disruptions.

Drivers also complained that auto LPG prices have risen by about ₹5 per kg in the city, but said the uncertainty over its availability posed a bigger concern.

Several drivers said they were forced to remain idle for hours or curtail trips as refuelling took longer than usual.

The rush has also overwhelmed booking systems of oil marketing companies, with distributors reporting repeated server crashes due to the surge in refill requests.

Average daily bookings for Indane LPG cylinders in the State have nearly doubled to around two lakh from about one lakh earlier, distributors said.

“This is panic buying,” said Bijan Biswas, spokesperson for the Indane LPG Distributors’ Association in Bengal. “Many people are afraid they might not get another cylinder soon, and that has led to this crisis,” he said.

Mr. Biswas said booking servers were frequently going down for four to five hours at a stretch as consumers tried to book through mobile apps, websites and call centres.

With digital booking systems becoming unreliable, a large number of consumers have started visiting distributor offices to place orders in person, resulting in long queues from early morning in many neighbourhoods. — PTI