Kathmandu, Sept. 10 -- Consumers in Kathmandu are again spending hours searching and queuing for liquefied petroleum gas as lower imports, pent-up demand and the closure of the Prithvi Highway combine to strain supplies in the capital city.

The disruption follows months of uncertainty. The country began facing pressure on LPG supplies in February after conflict escalated in West Asia. The Nepal Oil Corporation subsequently limited sales to half-filled 7.1-kilogram cylinders from February 20, while full 14.2-kilogram cylinders resumed in July after supplies from India improved.

But the return to full cylinders brought a surge in demand. At the same time, the August 30 collapse of the Prithvi Highway at Krishnabhir in Dhading, after the T...