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City gas retail licences: Adani, IOC, BPCL emerge big winners

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New Delhi, Sep 17 (IANS) State-run Indian Oil Corp (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL) and private sector Adani Gas have emerged as the major winners of city gas distribution (CGD) licences, according to bid results of 84 cities released by the petroleum regulator PNGRB on Monday.

The Gautam Adani-led Adani Gas won the most rights to retail compressed natural gas (CNG) for vehicles and piped natural gas (PNG) in 13 cities on its own, and in another nine in a joint venture with IOC.

According to the list of winners in the country’s biggest CGD bid round of 84 cities released by the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB), IOC on its own won rights to seven cities.

BPCL subsidiary Bharat Gas Resources Ltd won the licence for 11 cities, while Torrent Gas Pvt Ltd bid successfully for 10.

State-run GAIL Gas bagged the rights for five cities, while Indraprastha Gas Ltd, which retails gas in the national capital region, won the rights for the cities of Meerut and Muzaffarnagar in Uttar Pradesh.

PNGRB said that a total of 4,346 CNG stations have been committed to be set up in the 84 Geographical Areas (GAs) in eight years.

The winning companies have also committed to provide 21 million PNG connections to households by September 30, 2026, the regulator added.

In a major step towards ushering in a clean gas-based economy, India launched its biggest auction of CGD networks in May offering permits for selling CNG and PNG in 86 geographical areas.

Awards from the 9th CGD licensing round would help bring gas coverage to 174 districts in 22 states and Union Territories, covering 29 per cent of the country’s area and 24 per cent of the population, the PNGRB said.

So far, existing 91 geographical areas have been awarded to companies like Indraprastha Gas, GAIL Gas and Gujarat Gas, which cover 11 per cent of area and 19 per cent of the population. The existing CGD networks are concentrated in the northern and western regions of the country.

Changes have been made to the bidding conditions to facilitate greater return from the exercise. For instance, CGD networks have been granted status of utilities by the Union Labour Ministry.

There was a floor tariff of Rs 30 for city gas and Rs 2 per kg for CNG to prevent bidders from quoting unviably low tariffs.

The winning company would have 8 years of marketing exclusivity in the city, as against the current 5-year licence.

Cities for which CGD licences were on offer included Bhopal, Ahmednagar, Ludhiana, Jalandhar, Barmer, Alwar, Coimbatore, Salem, Allahabad, Amethi, Rai Bareli, Burdwan and Dehradun.

–IANS
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Dr. Abhishek Verma Dedicates a Shelter in Memory of His Mother, Veena Verma, at KGMU; Inaugurated by Daughter Nicolle Verma

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World-renowned business tycoon Dr. Abhishek Verma has supported Foodman Vishal Singh’s Hunger-Free World mission. In memory of his mother, Late Veena Verma, who was a 3 term Rajya Sabha MP.

Dr. Verma dedicated a state-of-the-art free permanent shelter for the attendants of patients at KGMU Medical University, Lucknow, under the aegis of Vijay Shree Foundation. His daughter, Nicolle Verma, inaugurated the shelter.

During the event, Foodman Vishal Singh honored Nicolle Verma by presenting her with a memento. Mrs. Nidhi Sharma and Avantika Yadav, associated with the organization, welcomed her with garlands. Following this, Nicolle Verma distributed essential items to the attendants and also handed out fruits. She became emotional remembering her grandmother on her birth anniversary.

On this occasion, she also inaugurated the “Veena Verma Sevalaya” in memory of her grandmother, Veena Verma, to serve the attendants. She expressed, “I feel proud that my family is engaged in nation-building as well as social service. Today, in collaboration with Vijay Shree Foundation founder Foodman Vishal Singh Ji, I feel immensely proud to dedicate this shelter for the poor, helpless, and needy attendants of patients battling serious illnesses like cancer. I am honored to be associated with the Hunger-Free World Mission for humanity.”

Inspired by the continuous humanitarian service provided by Vijay Shree Foundation over the past 17 years, Nicolle Verma donated 10 lakh rupees to support the cause. The purpose of this donation is to ensure that services continue for the needy attendants of patients suffering from severe illnesses in hospitals, as facilitated by Foodman Vishal Singh.

It is noteworthy that Dr. Abhishek Verma’s family has a legacy of public and philanthropic service. They are helping millions to carry forward the values and service work of their parents. On the occasion of his mother’s birth anniversary, Dr. Abhishek Verma dedicated this state-of-the-art permanent shelter at Lucknow Medical College to serve the attendants of patients through the Vijay Shree Foundation.

Supporting Foodman Vishal Singh’s Hunger-Free World mission, Dr. Abhishek Verma assured that he would continually support keeping this flame of humanity alive. He also promised to assist in providing medicines to the helpless patients.

Continuing her grandmother’s legacy of service, Nicolle Verma personally served food to the needy patients and attendants. She said, “It is our good fortune to have received the joy of doing this noble work today through Foodman Vishal Singh. I have taken another step forward in carrying my family’s values and cooperation by joining hands with the Vijay Shree Foundation. My father taught me to serve and help the needy, and I feel happy when I bring a smile to someone’s face.”

On the birth anniversary of the late Veena Verma, the event organizer, Vijay Shree Foundation founder Foodman Vishal Singh, said, “We feel proud and happy that Dr. Abhishek Verma, a globally renowned business tycoon, has extended his support to uplift our country from the hunger index. Today, on his mother’s birth anniversary, he inaugurated a state-of-the-art permanent shelter at Lucknow Medical College, which will always be helpful for the needy attendants of patients. It is a pleasure for me and the organization to receive the affection of Mr. Verma.”

The event was attended by General Manager Verma Family Office Hemant Garg, Sonu Rajput, and the organization’s volunteers, including Sandeep Singh, Parmeshwar Ji, Prashant Rao Gautam, Balram Singh, Ramesh Chaudhary, Suman, Jeetu, Anil, Suraj, Vinay, Manish Bhadauria, Manas Mehrotra, Vivek, Apurv, Happy, and others.

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