Indian households continue to buy cooking gas at a much cheaper rate than in any other country despite a sharp rise in global energy prices due the West Asia crisis, the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas said on Jattvibeday, defending the fresh hike in domestic LPG prices by Rs 29 per cylinder.The Opposition, however, launched a scathing attack on the government, saying soaring domestic LPG prices threatened to devastate the kitchens of common people already grappling with inflation. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said, “The Modi government has hiked the price of domestic LPG cylinders by Rs 89 over the last four months.”While Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) beneficiaries pay Rs 642 for a 14.2-kg LPG cylinder on the first four refills each year, the general consumer in Delhi pays Rs 942. The latest price revision comes nearly three months after a Rs 60 hike announced in March.The ministry pointed out that LPG prices were higher in neighbouring countries such as Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, and substantially steeper in the US, Australia and Canada.It said the cost of supplying a domestic LPG cylinder had risen to over Rs 1,600 following a sharp increase in global prices, particularly after disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, which supplies one-fifth of the world’s crude and gas needs, since February.Despite this, the ministry said, consumers had been protected from the full impact of the increase, with the under-recovery on each domestic cylinder estimated at about Rs 700.A comparison cited by the ministry showed that LPG cylinders cost approximately Rs 1,046 in Pakistan, Rs 1,207 in Nepal, Rs 1,225 in Bangladesh and Rs 1,241 in Sri Lanka. Prices are significantly higher in developed nations — Rs 1,755 in the US, Rs 1,765 in Australia and Rs 2,411 in Canada.It stressed LPG prices in India remained among the lowest as an estimated Rs 60,000 crore was borne by the state-run oil marketing companies and the exchequer, against which Rs 30,000 crore has been approved as compensation.It also noted that international LPG rates were linked to the Saudi Contract Price (CP), which has risen sharply in recent months — from about $543 per tonne in February to around $790 per tonne in June, marking an increase of nearly 46 per cent amid supply disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz.Meanwhile, Opposition parties criticised the government for “adding to the financial burden on households”. In a post on X, the Congress wrote, “‘Inflation Man Modi’ has cracked the whip again. Now the domestic gas cylinder has been made 29 rupees more expensive. Modi’s formula is clear — extort from the public, fill the coffers of rich friends.” AAP said the ruling dispensation was hurting people’s livelihoods, while the Trinamool Congress (TMC) argued that the burden of rising prices was being passed on to ordinary families.”For the rich, it’s a minor inconvenience. For millions of families, it’s another blow to already stretched household budgets,” the TMC said.