Bhubaneswar: The meeting of the State Crisis Management Group(SCMG), held at the Lok Seva Bhawan conference room, was chaired by Chief Secretary Anu Garg. SCMG met to review the supply and future preparedness of cooking gas, petrol, and diesel in Odisha.
Development Commissioner Deoranjan Kumar Singh, the Additional Chief Secretary (ACS) of Home, Shri Hemant Sharma, ACS for Urban Development Shrimati Usha Padhee graced the Meet.
ACS for Energy Shri Vishal Dev, Principal Secretary of Works and Food Supplies Shri Sanjay Kumar Singh, and Secretary of Agriculture Shri Sachin R. Jadhav was present.
Secretary of Higher Education Shri Arvind Agarwal, Secretary of School and Mass Education Shri N. Thirumala Naik, and Secretary of Rural Development Shrimati Yamini Sarangi was present.
During the discussions, the Chief Secretary emphasized the need for continuous monitoring and review of fuel stocks due to the current global situation and instructions from the central government.
The committee addressed the rising use of commercial LPG in hotels and restaurants and urged a transition toward Piped Natural Gas (PNG) to reduce pressure on supplies.
While the Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare Department confirmed there are no issues with LPG supply for domestic consumers, officials expressed concern regarding irregular supply and black marketing, noting that enforcement raids are ongoing.
To further decrease reliance on traditional fuels, the meeting highlighted the importance of accelerating electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure.
To maintain public order and prevent panic, the Director General of Police advised on the deployment of necessary forces, and the Chief Secretary directed that these crisis management meetings be held every two to three days at the state level, with regular meetings also occurring at the district level