Household gas cylinders held steady on New Year's Day while restaurants paid more

India started 2026 with a two-speed fuel price revision. Oil marketing companies raised the price of the 19 kg commercial LPG cylinder by Rs 111 from January 1, taking the Delhi retail rate to Rs 1,691.50 from Rs 1,580.50. The 14.2 kg domestic cylinder, the one that most households actually buy, was left untouched.

• Delhi: Rs 1,691.50 for a 19 kg commercial cylinder, up from Rs 1,580.50.
• Mumbai: Rs 1,642.50, up from Rs 1,531.50. Kolkata: Rs 1,795, up from Rs 1,684. Chennai: Rs 1,849.50, up from Rs 1,739.50.
• Domestic 14.2 kg rates unchanged in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai, with Delhi at Rs 853 for non-PMUY households and Rs 553 for beneficiaries of the Ujjwala scheme.
• CNG and domestic PNG prices cut by Rs 1 each from January 1 in select cities, with piped gas rates in parts of Delhi-NCR also revised down following a change in pipeline tariffs.

The clarification came from the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas on the evening of January 1, after reports of the commercial increase began circulating. Commercial LPG pricing is market-determined and benchmarked to international rates; domestic pricing is not. The Rs 111 rise is the closest the government came to confirming that the distinction is being enforced rather than described.

Who absorbs the gap

The arithmetic behind that gap is unusually visible. India imports roughly 60% of its LPG requirement, and the Saudi Contract Price is the benchmark that matters. Between July 2023 and November 2025 the average Saudi CP rose about 21%, from US$385 a metric tonne to US$466. Over the same window the domestic cylinder price in Delhi fell about 22%, from Rs 1,103 in August 2023 to Rs 853 in November 2025. Those two lines moved in opposite directions, and the difference was carried by someone other than the household.