If you live in a city where piped natural gas is available but have not yet switched from LPG cylinders, there is an important government development you should know about.

The government has approved an incentive scheme aimed at increasing the number of active domestic PNG connections across India. The initiative came into effect from September 1, 2026, and is designed to encourage faster expansion of piped natural gas services to households.

Why is the government promoting PNG?

Piped Natural Gas, or PNG, is supplied directly to a home through a pipeline instead of requiring households to store and replace LPG cylinders.

For households with access to a PNG network, this can mean a more convenient cooking-fuel arrangement. There is no need to book a cylinder, wait for delivery or make space for storing a spare cylinder.

The government currently estimates that India has around 1.74 crore domestic PNG connections.

What does the new scheme actually do?

An important point is that this is not a direct cash subsidy being deposited into household bank accounts.

Instead, the government is providing incentives to City Gas Distribution companies. The objective is to encourage these companies to activate existing connections and expand PNG infrastructure into more areas.

Under the scheme, eligible gas distribution entities can receive additional domestically produced gas for achieving incremental billed domestic PNG connections beyond specified thresholds.

The intention is to make expanding household PNG connectivity financially more attractive for gas distribution companies.

A new digital registration system is also being developed

The government has also announced plans for a unified PNG registration portal.

The proposed single-window platform is intended to make it easier for consumers to apply for and track new domestic PNG connections.

This could be particularly useful for households that currently have to navigate different processes depending on their local gas distribution company.

What about LPG cylinders after switching to PNG?

The government has also announced National PNG Drive 2.0, which includes measures such as a portal for surrendering LPG cylinders, household awareness programmes and efforts to encourage housing societies using LPG to switch to PNG where the infrastructure is available.

However, households should not assume that they need to immediately surrender their LPG connection simply because PNG is available in their area. Consumers should first check the applicable rules and instructions from their gas distributor and the relevant authorities.

Could PNG become more affordable?

The government is also encouraging states to rationalise VAT on natural gas to 5%. Several states have already reduced VAT, according to the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas.

The broader objective is to bring down the cost of PNG for consumers while encouraging more households to shift towards piped cooking fuel.

What should households do now?

If PNG infrastructure has recently reached your locality, residents should check with their authorised City Gas Distribution company about:

• Whether domestic PNG connections are available in their area

• The cost of a new connection

• Installation and security-deposit requirements

• Current PNG tariff rates

• The process for converting from LPG to PNG

• Whether their housing society has already been included in the network

Most importantly, consumers should use only the official website or customer-care channels of their authorised gas distributor for registration and payments.

Why this update matters

The government's new incentive scheme is aimed at solving one of the biggest challenges in expanding PNG usage: getting more households connected and ensuring existing connections actually become active.

For consumers living in areas where PNG infrastructure is already available, the coming months could make the process of getting a working domestic connection simpler.

For households still using LPG, the key thing to remember is that PNG is not automatically available everywhere. Its availability depends on whether a gas distribution network has been developed in the locality.

So, if you have recently noticed PNG pipelines being installed near your home, this is a good time to check whether your area is eligible for a domestic connection and what the latest connection process involves.