In order to check incidents of LPG cylinder blasts, which pose a threat to lives and property, LPG provider companies here have planned a series of awareness camps and workshops to apprise residents with precautions and safety measures in cylinder use.
R K Tiwary, Chief Regional Manager of Mumbai LPG Regional Office of Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL), said, “In Mumbai city, half of the population lives in slums and there is less alertness in safe handling and storage of gas cylinders. Hence, we chose this city to start a awareness campaign.
“Our focus area would be chawls and slums. Apart from explaining the methods of safe handling, we would also show them video clips. This would serve two purposes. First, they would come to know how to handle LPG gas and second, they would learn how to stop its extraneous use in order to conserve energy,” he said.
Tiwary said orders have been issued, not only by the HPCL authorities but also by the Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL), to all its LPG cylinder distributors to hold at least one meeting of the safety clinic with the customers in one month.
Currently, the BPCL has 72 LPG distributors, while HPCL has 58 distributors in the city, and all of them have been asked to conduct at least one round of the safety clinic till Diwali this year, he further said.
Describing the key areas of awareness, Tiwary said, “We would explain various aspects, such as what should be the ideal place of storage of an LPG gas cylinder, what precautions to take before the cylinder is connected to a stove, while using the cylinder and when the cylinder is not in use.”
