Punjab: The Golden Temple’s Langar Hall—widely regarded as the world’s largest community kitchen—is receiving a continuous supply of both Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) refills and piped Compressed Natural Gas (CNG). Bhagwant Singh Dhangra, the temple’s General Manager, stated today that the Shri Guru Ram Das Ji Langar Hall currently holds a stock of 115 LPG refills, against an authorized capacity of 700 LPG connections. Another consignment of 100 refills is scheduled to arrive on Friday. “Officials from three oil marketing companies—Hindustan Petroleum, Indane, and Bharat Gas—have sought an appointment for a meeting tomorrow,” Dhangra said. “They have not expressed any concerns regarding supplies thus far. The situation will become clearer following the meeting.”
CNG serves as the primary fuel source for cooking at the Golden Temple’s Langar Hall, delivered via a direct pipeline connected to the kitchen. According to Dhangra, approximately 1,300 units of CNG are consumed every 24 hours, alongside the utilization of about 30 LPG refills. He noted that the Langar Hall feeds between 80,000 and 90,000 devotees daily, a figure that surges to over 100,000 on weekends. The Golden Temple’s community kitchen is renowned globally for providing free meals to visitors from all walks of life—regardless of their religion, caste, gender, or social status.
The Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation supplies the CNG through an underground pipeline. This pipeline became operational in 2019, following the laying of a dedicated 4.5-kilometer line specifically for the Langar Hall. This transition led to the complete elimination of wood as a cooking fuel and significantly reduced the reliance on LPG, thereby contributing to a reduction in pollution. Prior to 2019, approximately 100 LPG cylinders and 50–60 quintals of firewood were used daily in the Langar kitchen to prepare meals for about 60,000 people. On festivals and weekends, the number of LPG cylinders would rise to approximately 125.
Punjab: Adequate Gas Supply for Cooking at the Golden Temple’s Langar
