Amid the LPG crisis, jugaad saves a samosa shop in Udaipur

The LPG crisis that began in early 2026 is still affecting daily life and livelihoods in India. I recently witnessed an example of this in my locality in Udaipur, Rajasthan, where I met Raju,* a snacks shop owner. 

When I visited his shop to buy some samosas, I saw that he was using a furnace to fry the snacks. The furnace looked quite unique, and there was no cylinder in sight. When I asked him about this set-up, he said that up until a few months ago he would cook everything using LPG. “But with the scarcity that started earlier this year, it became increasingly difficult to get hold of a cylinder. A commercial cylinder that once cost INR 2,100–2,200 is now being sold for INR 3,500. Since we cook hot food including samosas, aloo bada, kachori, vada pav, and poha, a cylinder gets used up in a day. Even if we consider paying such high costs, cylinders are almost never available on time.” This has made it challenging for Raju* to keep the shop running.

He went on to tell me about how he came up with the idea to build his own furnace. “This furnace can run on both diesel and used machine oil. On a regular day, the furnace requires diesel worth INR 1,000–1,200. On Sundays, which are relatively busier, it can cost approximately INR 2,000. I recognise that this is a temporary solution since we don’t know if diesel will be as readily available in the future as it is now. Machine oil too costs us INR 35–40 per litre, but it is 25 percent less than the cost of a cylinder.” 

Switching to these fuels has reduced his daily expenses, but installing the furnace was not easy. He added, “The first machine we installed was too small and caught fire, resulting in a loss of INR 10,000–12,000. We then had to get another one made. This set-up was also not readily available in the market. We bought a furnace and blower separately, and welders from Hathipole market had to connect the two. Overall, the entire system has cost us INR 30,000–35,000 so far.” 

Raju said he had little choice but to bear these expenses—the shop is his only source of income. “We have to adapt to the circumstances or risk losing our livelihood.”

*Name changed to maintain confidentiality.

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Know more: Read more about how the LPG shortage in becoming a crisis of trust for fieldworkers.