Kannur (Kerala) [India], March 23 (ANI): Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Sunday strongly criticised the Centre over rising LPG cylinder prices and related economic distress amidst the escalating West Asia conflict, alleging that the Union government's policies have pushed small businesses toward closure.

Speaking at an event in Kannur, the CM said, 'Increase in cooking gas prices has put hotels and small-scale sectors under severe pressure', and accused the Centre of deliberately creating this situation.'

Vijayan further alleged that the BJP-led government's policies reflect complete subservience to corporate interests, resulting in anti-people decisions.

The Chief Minister also claimed that India's sovereignty has been compromised, stating that the country has reached a point where it is waiting for approval from the United States for key decisions.

His remarks comes amid the escalating tensions and conflict that began on February 28 with the killing of 86-year-old Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in joint military strikes by the US and Israel, after which Iran, in its retaliation, targeted US assets in several Gulf countries and Israel, causing disruption in the waterways and affecting international energy markets and global economic stability.

Due to the conflict in the region, Iran has virtually closed the Strait of Hormuz, a critical transit route for global energy supply.

Meanwhile, the Government of India has asked city gas distribution (CGD) companies to prioritise piped natural gas (PNG) connections for commercial establishments, and has also taken several steps to ensure stable fuel supplies as conflict in West Asia continues to impact energy flows.

In an update released on Saturday, the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas said, 'City Gas Distribution (CGD) entities have been advised by Govt. of India to prioritise PNG connections for commercial establishments such as restaurants, hotels and canteens across all their Gas, to address concerns regarding the availability of commercial LPG.'

The ministry added that the government has also asked ministries and state governments to speed up approvals related to gas infrastructure. (ANI)