Ranchi, June 1: You pay for each kg of the cooking gas every month. But you may not get the exact volume. A survey report by a private firm reveals this.
The report also brings forth the lack of awareness among customers to avail facilities while procuring gas cylinders every month.
The survey, conducted by Showgun India, revealed that as per the norms, all distributors have been provided by special weighing machines to weigh the cylinders to check the weight of the gas.
The standard weight of gas in a cylinder should be 14.2 kg and along with the metal cylinder the total weight should be 30 kg.
?However, customers only know about the weight of the gas and do not inquire about the weight of the cylinder or have it checked by the distributing agency. Without checking the weight of the cylinder there is no way to determine whether the quantity of the gas in the cylinder is proper or not,? said Showgun India assistant manager Pradeep Paswan.
?The distributors are bound to carry weighing machines in the trucks and auto-rickshaws used to deliver gas cylinders at the doorsteps of the customers, Paswan said.
While the customers are unaware of the weighing machines and do not ask their cylinders to be weighed, the distributors also do not carry weighing machines along with them in their vehicles,? Paswan added.
The customers pay Rs 294.15 as a price for using a gas cylinder but are charged an extra Rs 5 to Rs 10 for dropping the cylinders at their doorsteps.
The customers are also not aware that the gas companies pay a fixed commission per cylinder to the distributors for distribution of the cylinders at the doorsteps of the customers, Paswan said.
?The staff of the local LPG distributor asks extra money for bringing the cylinder to the house. Most of the time when the agency people come to drop the cylinders at our home, there are no male members present here and it is difficult to carry the heavy cylinder inside. There is no option but to rely on the agency staff and I pay him an extra Rs 10 to keep him satisfied as well as the work being done,? said Rita Verma, a housewife.
Kanke-based Devi Gas Agency proprietor Sunil Kumar said weighing machines are provided to all distributors.
Kumar refuted the charges that weighing machines are not carried in vehicles used to distribute gas cylinders to customers. ?We maintain a log book of the weight of the cylinders in our depot,? Kumar said.
In conducting the survey the firm roped in management trainees and also informed customers proper safety measures to get more out of their gas cylinders.
?The objective of the customer care programme is to inform people their rights and to avail all services which are to be provided to them without any extra charges,? Paswan said.