Shimla, March 11 -- Amid the West Asia war and fear of cooking gas shortage, the Centre has stopped the refilling of commercial LPG cylinders, leaving hotels, eateries and food businesses in the lurch.

As per the central ministry's directives, the refilling of 19 kg, 47.5 kg, and 425 kg commercial cylinders has been suspended for the time being. The step has been taken to prioritise domestic consumers and address potential LPG shortages.

Ashwani Bamba, president hotel association, Dharamshala, said, "The situation is grave with the supply of commercial cylinders being stopped. We are meeting the deputy commissioner seeking relaxations to exempt the small restaurants and hotels and allow them to use domestic cylinders at least to provide...