New Delhi, March 18 -- With the LPG supply squeeze impacting hotels, businesses and even domestic consumers due to longer waiting periods and panic bookings, the Centre has asked states to expedite approvals for piped gas projects to enable faster rollout and ease pressure on cooking gas availability.

As the war in Middle East, which blocked India's access to almost 60% of its LPG supply, continues with no end in sight, the government is now pushing for the use of alternative cooking mediums like induction cooktops.

The government has also asked domestic LPG users to shift to piped natural gas (PNG) as it may have relatively better supply. To promote this, the Centre has also said that companies like Indraprastha Gas Limited (IGL), GAIL...