Chennai

M. K. Stalin on Wednesday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi raising concerns over energy supplies and the safety of Tamils in West Asia amid escalating tensions in the region.

In a post on X, the Tamil Nadu chief minister said he had urged the Centre to take immediate steps to ensure uninterrupted LPG supply for domestic, commercial and industrial consumers in the state.

Stalin also sought urgent measures to ensure the safety of Tamils stranded in the region, requesting the facilitation of transit visas, coordinated evacuation efforts and additional flights for their safe return.

He further said he had written to Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri regarding natural gas allocation for power plants and asked the Centre to revisit the methodology under the Natural Gas (Supply Regulation) Order, 2026 to ensure adequate availability of gas.

The chief minister said sufficient gas supply was essential to meet the state’s peak power demand during the upcoming summer season.

“Our MPs will hand over these letters in person to the concerned Union ministers. We look forward to swift action from the Government of India,” Stalin said.

The concerns come amid escalating tensions in West Asia following joint military strikes by the United States and Israel on Iran that reportedly killed the country’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei on February 28.

Meanwhile, R. K. Gupta, national vice-president of the LPG Association, said there was no shortage of domestic LPG supply.

“According to the oil companies, there is no shortage in supply. Commercial LPG cylinders have not been issued since yesterday, but exemptions have been given to hospitals and educational institutions,” Gupta told ANI.

The Centre has invoked the Essential Commodities Act, 1955 to regulate the supply and distribution of petroleum products and natural gas, including LNG, ensuring priority allocation to critical sectors.

According to the government order, priority supply will be maintained for sectors such as domestic piped natural gas, compressed natural gas for transport, LPG production and essential pipeline operations.

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The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas has also prioritised domestic LPG supply to households and directed oil refineries to increase production, while a committee of oil marketing companies will review requests from commercial users such as restaurants and hotels.