Chennai (Tamil Nadu) [India], March 11 (ANI): Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) spokesperson TKS Elangovan criticised the Centre over the shortage of commercial LPG cylinders affecting hotels and restaurants across the country, saying the Centre must take immediate action to address the issue and protect the country's energy interests amid the ongoing conflict in West Asia.

Speaking to ANI here, Elangovan said the Union government should take diplomatic steps to ensure a stable crude oil supply from West Asian countries, which remain a key source of energy for India. He argued that international political dynamics and global trade restrictions were contributing to the current fuel supply challenges.

'The Union Govt has to take necessary action on this. They should ask Israel not to go against Islamic countries from where crude oil comes to various countries,' Elangovan said.

'The US has already said that we should not buy crude oil from Russia. These people are commanding other countries as to what to do and what not to do. If they don't like a country, whoever purchases anything or has trade relations with that country becomes their enemy. I don't know what kind of politics this is. People like Trump are anti-human,' he added.

Elangovan also criticised the BJP-led Centre ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's scheduled visit to Tamil Nadu, claiming that the ruling party's policies have been detrimental to the state.

'Whenever they come, people will know what action they have taken against the welfare of the State of Tamil Nadu. They are anti-Tamils. There is no chance of them coming to power,' he said.

Meanwhile, hotel operators in Chennai say the shortage of commercial LPG cylinders has begun to affect daily operations. Narayanan, supervisor of the Hotel Ananda Teynampet branch, said restaurants are struggling to manage with reduced supplies.

'We use 8 cylinders daily for our cooking, but since yesterday, the supply has been stopped. We try to adjust by taking from our branch hotels. Due to a deficit of LPG gas, we have decreased the menu items in our food list,' Narayanan said.

The shortage of commercial LPG cylinders has been reported in several states as the government prioritises domestic LPG supply amid disruptions in global energy supply chains triggered by the ongoing West Asia conflict. Officials maintain that household LPG supply remains uninterrupted while essential sectors continue to receive priority allocation. (ANI)