How many cooking gas cylinders does an average Nepali household have? How many of them are empty, how many are in use and how many are full? How many of them are safe for use and how many are unsafe—and need scrapping?

What percentage of cooking gas consumers have some knowledge about safety precautions they should take while handling the flammable material? Do they have fire extinguishers in their houses? Do they know how to use the extinguisher?

Thursday’s gas cylinder explosion at a momo shop in Kamalpokhari has once again given rise to a slew of difficult questions regarding the safe handling of cooking gas cylinders at the household level. 

These questions make sense because cooking gas cylinders and gas stoves have become a part and parcel of an average Nepali household. Leave the cities, it is not uncommon to find gas cylinders and stoves in far-flung areas of the country.

It is quite possible that an average Nepali household has more than one gas cylinder (filled) because supply-related obstructions of the past have taught us to have a cylinder or two for rainy days. 

Imagine more than one cylinder at almost every house in a city with high population density. Add to it a general lack of awareness on safety measures that one should take while handling gas cylinders and stoves. 

The scenario sends a chill down the spine, doesn’t it? It should. 

Of course, the consumer should know about safe handling of gas cylinders and stoves. But the buck does not stop there, and it should not. The onus is on the Nepal Oil Corporation, the sole importer and supplier of petroleum products throughout Nepal, as well as other relevant government authorities to inculcate in the consumer a safety culture pertaining to the use of gas cylinders and stoves. 

The momo shop gas cylinder blast, in which around 12 people sustained injuries, also harks back to a promise our political leadership made some years ago, to supply cooking gas in the consumers’ kitchens through a pipeline. The big talk at that time was that all you have to do is turn on the pipe and the gas will flow (provided you have paid the bill, of course). 

While much water has flown down our rivers since then, the gas is yet to come through the gullible Nepali people’s pipelines. 

In summary, both the government and the consumer should learn lessons from the Kamalpokhari blast and do their bit to lessen the risks of such blasts. 

In the long run, the political and bureaucratic leadership of a country with considerable hydropower potential should switch from dirty and costly fuels to clean and green energy if it is indeed serious about achieving national progress and prosperity, and bringing happiness to the masses.