Lok Sabha Question No. 1380 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2016-05-02
Subject: Allotment of Petrol Pumps/Gas Agencies
Ministry: PETROLEUM AND NATURAL GAS
Asked by: SONA RAM CHOUDHARY

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1380 TO BE ANSWERED ON 2 ND  MAY 2016

ALLOTMENT OF PETROL PUMPS/GAS AGENCIES 1380. COL. SONARAM CHOUDHARY: पेट्रोलियम एवं प्राक ृ लिक गैस मंत्री Will the Minister of PETROLEUM AND NATURAL GAS be pleased to state: (a)  the  norms/criteria  laid  down  by  the  Government for  allotment  of  LPG  agencies and petrol pumps in the country; (b) whether the Government has relaxed/ proposes to relax the said norms for the far flung thinly populated hilly and desert areas of the country including Rajasthan; and (c) if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor? ANSWER पेट्रोलियम एवं प्राक ृ लिक गैस मंत्रािय में राज्य मंत्री ( स्विंत्र प्रभार ) ( श्री धमेंद्र प्रधान ) MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT  CHARGE)  IN THE MINISTRY OF PETROLEUM & NATURAL GAS (SHRI DHARMENDRA PRADHAN) (a) to (c) The selection norms/guidelines for allotment of Regular  LPG distributorships,  RGGLVs  and  Retail  Outlets(ROs)  are  uniform across  the  country. The guidelines for ROs are at Annexure-I and  for  LPG  &  RGGLV distributorships are at Annexure-II .

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## The norms and criteria/reservation policy for allotment of Petrol pumps

The  current  guidelines  for  Retail  Outlet  Dealer  Selection  have  come  into  effect w.e.f. 21.5.2014.

## Salient Features of the Dealership Selection Guidelines

There is neither marks-based evaluation system nor interview process for selection. The selection is carried out by a transparent system of draw of lots/Bidding. Individuals and Non- Individuals  can  apply.  All  applicants  meeting  the  eligibility  criteria  qualify  for  the draw/bidding.  As  per  the  eligibility  criteria  an  applicant  has  to  meet  the  minimum requirements on availability of suitable land at the advertised location, Finance, Age and Educational Qualification. However, for Corpus fund locations, Finance is not an eligibility criterion.  All  categories  of  applicants,  except  SC/ST  category,  are  required  to  have suitable piece of land in the advertised location/area either by way of ownership / long term lease. SC/ST category applicants may apply without land.

## Reservation for retail outlet (RO) dealerships

## i) The percentage reservation for various categories is as under:

The  reservation  for  various  categories  in  all  the  States  except  Arunachal  Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Mizoram are as under: -

| Category                                                                                                                                               | SC/ST   | OBC   | Open          | Total       |
|--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|---------|-------|---------------|-------------|
| Combined Category 1 (CC1) Comprising of :- (i) Defence Personnel & (ii) Para Military Personnel/Central/State Govt. and Central/State PSU employees    | 2%      | 2%    | 4%            | 8%          |
| Combined Category 2 (CC2) Comprising of :- (i) Physically Handicapped Persons (PH) (ii) Outstanding Sports Persons (OSP) & (iii) Freedom Fighters (FF) | 1%      | 1%    | 2%            | 4%          |
| SC/ST                                                                                                                                                  | 19.50%  |       |               | 19.50%      |
| Open                                                                                                                                                   |         | 27%   | 44.50% 50.50% | 44.50% 100% |
| Total                                                                                                                                                  | 22.50%  |       |               |             |

Reservations in states of Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Mizoram are as under as approved by MOP & NG:

| State   | Percentage of Regular & Rural RO Dealerships to be awarded to ST category   | Balance percentage to be awarded to 'Open' category   |
|---------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------|-------------------------------------------------------|

| Arunachal Pradesh   |   70 |   30 |
|---------------------|------|------|
| Meghalaya           |   80 |   20 |
| Nagaland            |   80 |   20 |
| Mizoram             |   90 |   10 |

## Eligibility Criteria :

## Common Eligibility Criteria for all Categories applying as Individual

- (i) Citizenship

- : Indian Citizen.

- (ii) Residential status :
- (iv) Educational qualification:

Regular ROs : Resident of India

Rural ROs : Resident of India and Resident of the concerned Revenue District

(iii) Age

: Not less than 21 years and not more than 55 years except for Freedom Fighter

## Prior to 3.3.2016

- a) In respect of applicants belonging to CC1 & CC2 categories:-

For Rural ROs: Passed Minimum 10 th (examination conducted by a Board/School).

For  Regular  ROs:  Passed  Minimum  10+2  level  of  examination  conducted  by  a Board/University.

- b) In respect of applicants belonging to other categories:-

For  Rural  ROs:  Passed  Minimum  10+2  level  of  examination  conducted  by  a Board/University.

For Regular ROs: Have minimum any one of the following educational qualification awarded by any of the universities incorporated by an Act of the Central or State Legislature  in  India  or  any  other  educational  institution  established  by  an  Act  of Parliament  or  declared  to  be  deemed  as  a  University  under  UGC  Act  1956,  or possess  an    equivalent  qualification  recognized  by  the  Ministry  of  HRD,  Govt.  Of India.

-  Graduation in any field
-  Chartered Accountant
-  Company Secretary
-  Cost Accountant
-  Diploma in Engineering

Minimum Educational qualification is not applicable to  Freedom Fighters under CC2 category.

## W.e.f. to 3.3.2016

Minimum  10th  Pass  (examination  conducted  by  a  Board/School)  for  all  categories except for Freedom Fighters for both Regular and Rural ROs. Freedom Fighters will be exempted from minimum educational qualification requirement.

- (v) Finance :

For Regular ROs the fund requirement for eligibility will be Rs. 25 lakhs and in respect of  Rural  ROs  the  fund  requirement  for  eligibility  will  be  Rs.  12  lakhs.  However,  for Location under SC/ST category i.e. Corpus fund locations, Finance is not an eligibility criterion.

- (vi) Land    (Applicable  to  all  categories  except  for  SC/ST  category): Availability  of suitable land at the advertised location is an eligibility criteria. SC/ST category may apply without land.
- (vii) Multiple Dealership Norm : Applicants should fulfill multiple dealership norm.

## Draw of Lots / Bidding process

In the Draw of Lots / Bidding process, priority will be given to applicants with regard to ownership of land as mentioned below :

-  Group  1:  Applicants  having  suitable  piece  of  land  in  the  advertised  location/area either by way of ownership / long term lease including in all reserved categories.
-  Group 2: Applicants having Firm offer of purchase or long term lease for a piece of suitable land including in all reserved categories.
-  Group 3 (Only for SC/ST applicants) :  Applicants, under SC/ST category, who have not offered land in the application.

Draw of lots / Opening of Bids will be held first amongst the eligible applicants with land falling in Group 1.

Draw  of  lots  amongst  eligible  applicants  of  Group  -  2  will  be  held  only  if  there  is  no applicant in Group 1 or applicants in Group 1 have been disqualified or withdrawn.

The entire proceedings of the draw/bidding will be video graphed in one shot.

The result of the draw will be displayed on the notice board of the venue immediately and at Company office. It will also be hosted on the website of the Company.

***************************************************************************************************************

## Brief on Selection Guidelines for LPG Distributorships (Regular & RGGLV)

## 1. IDENTIFICATION OF LOCATIONS

Locations  for  setting  up  of  LPG  Distributorship  are  identified  based  on  available  refill  sale potential, which can sustain economically viable operation of an LPG distributorship. The refill sale  potential  is  based  on  several  factors  including  population,  population  growth  rate, economic prosperity of the location and the distance from the existing nearest distributor.

The setting up of LPG distributorships at the identified locations is a business proposition that have business risk and does not guarantee any assured returns or profits.

## 2. RESERVATION

The percentage reservation for various categories in all the States except Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Mizoram are as under: -

| A   | Open Category (O)                          | 50.5%   |
|-----|--------------------------------------------|---------|
| B   | Schedule Castes / Scheduled Tribes (SC/ST) | 22.5%   |
| C   | Other Backward Classes (OBC)               | 27.0%   |

In each of the above categories, there will be sub-categories as under:-

| Sub-Category                                                                                                                      | Reservation Categories (in %)   | Reservation Categories (in %)   | Reservation Categories (in %)   | Reservation Categories (in %)   |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|---------------------------------|---------------------------------|---------------------------------|---------------------------------|
|                                                                                                                                   | SC/ST                           | OBC                             | Open                            | Total                           |
| Government Personnel category (GP) consisting of Defence, Central/State Govt and Central/ State PSU employees                     | 2                               | 2                               | 4                               | 8                               |
| Combined Category (CC) consisting of Physically Handicapped Personnel (PH),Outstanding Sports Persons (OSP), Freedom Fighter (FF) | 1                               | 1                               | 2                               | 4                               |
| Any person from the respective category                                                                                           | 19.5                            | 24                              | 44.5                            | 88                              |
| Total                                                                                                                             | 22.5                            | 27                              | 50.5                            | 100                             |

The reservation under respective categories is SC/ST (GP)-2%, SC/ST (CC)-1%, SC/ST-19.5%, OBC (GP)-2%, OBC (CC)-1%, OBC-24%, Open (GP) - 4%, Open (CC)-2%, Open-44.5%.

State-wise '200-point' roster is maintained separately for Regular Distributorships and RGGLV on  Industry  basis  (i.e  jointly  by  IOCL,  BPCL  and  HPCL)  to  ensure  percentage  reservations  as mentioned above are achieved. Distribution between SC & ST is as per the population ratio in respective States.

Reservations in tribal areas in North Eastern States for Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Mizoram are as under:

| State             |   Percentage of Regular LPG Distributors to be awarded to ST category |   Balance % to be awarded to open category |
|-------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------|
| Arunachal Pradesh |                                                                    70 |                                         30 |
| Meghalaya         |                                                                    80 |                                         20 |
| Nagaland          |                                                                    80 |                                         20 |
| Mizoram           |                                                                    90 |                                         10 |

## 3. MODE OF SELECTION

For Regular distributorships, selection is done by inviting applications through  advertisements published in two newspapers - One English daily having widest circulation in the State and one vernacular daily - having widest circulation in the district where the location is situated.

In  case  of  RGGLVs,  selection  is  done  by  inviting  applications  through  advertisements  in  2 vernacular  newspapers  -  one  with  widest  circulation  in  the  State  and  other  with  widest circulation in District in which RGGLV is to be setup.

- Selection  of  LPG  distributor  for  an  advertised  location  is  done  by  draw  from  all  the  eligible applicants for that location.

## 4. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA FOR INDIVIDUAL APPLICANTS

All applicants fulfilling the eligibility criteria will become eligible for the draw for selection of the LPG distributorship.  The common eligibility Criteria is as under: -

| Parameter   | Regular Distributorship Criteria   | RGGLV Criteria                   |
|-------------|------------------------------------|----------------------------------|
| Citizenship | Indian                             | Indian                           |
| Resident    | Indian                             | Resident of Taluka/Tehsil of the |

|                           |                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             | advertised location. Preference is given to residents of Gram Panchayat.                                                                                                    |
|---------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Educational Qualification | Have minimum any one of the following educational qualification as on the date of application : a) Graduation in any field b) Chartered Accountant c) Company Secretary d) Cost Accountant e) Diploma in Engineering The applicants applying under the category of 'SKO dealers of OMCs', should have passed minimum X th standard examination or equivalent from a recognized Board. The Educational Qualification criteria is not applicable for applicants belonging to Freedom Fighter (FF) category.                                                                   | Have passed minimum X th Standard examination or equivalent from a recognized Board. Same as for Regular Distributorship. Same as for Regular Distributorship.              |
| Age                       | Be not less than 21 years and not more than 45 years in age as on the date of application for all categories except GP & FF category & applicants belonging to the category of 'SKO dealers of OMCs'. For applicants applying for location reserved under GP category, age should not be less than 21 years and not more than 60 years as on date of application. For applicants belonging to the category of 'SKO dealers of OMCs', maximum upper age limit shall be 60 years as on date of application. There is no age restriction for applicants applying for locations | Same as for Regular Distributorship. Same as for Regular Distributorship. Same as for Regular Distributorship. Same as for Regular Distributorship.                         |
| Finance                   | Have minimum amount of Rs 15 lakhs for Urban markets and Rs 10 lakhs for Urban-Rural & Rural markets respectively in the name of applicant or family members of the 'Family Unit'                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           | Have minimum amount of Rs 4 lakhs in the name of applicant or family members of the "Family unit" of the applicant as the closing balance on the last date of submission of |

|                 | of the applicant as the closing balance on the last date for submission of application. The financial instrument(s) as mentioned above cannot be offered by more than one applicant for the same Regular Distributorship location of the advertisement. In case of locations reserved under 'SC/ST' category, minimum fund requirement is Rs 5 lakhs for Urban Markets and Rs 2.5 lakhs for Urban- & Rural Markets respectively.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      | application. The financial instrument(s) mentioned for above amount cannot be offered by more than one applicant for the same RGGLV location of the advertisement. In case of locations reserved under 'SC/ST' category, minimum fund requirement is Rs 2 lakhs .                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               |
|-----------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Land for Godown | Rural The applicant should own as on the last date for submission of application a plot of land of minimum dimensions 25 mtr. x 30 mtr. (within 15 km from municipal/ town/ village limits of the location offered in the same State) for construction of LPG Godown for storage of 8000 Kg of LPG in cylinders OR a ready LPG cylinder storage godown (within 15 km from municipal/ town/ village limits of the location offered in the same State) of 8000 Kg capacity. The same piece of land for godown/ godown cannot be offered by more than one applicant for a particular location against an advertisement. The land should also be plain, in one contiguous plot, free from live overhead power transmission or telephone lines. Canals/ Drainage/ Nallahs should not be passing through the plot. It is the responsibility of the selected candidate to observe and perform the provisions of all rules and regulations, Government or municipal or local or such like acts, laws, regulations, bye laws as may be enforced from time to time w.r.t. land for construction of godown/ LPG Godown. The selected candidate has to ensure that an all weather motorable approach road (public or private road | The applicant should own a plot of land of minimum dimensions 21 mtr. x 26 mtr. for construction of LPG Godown for storage of 5000 Kg of LPG in cylinders at the advertised RGGLV location OR a ready LPG cylinder storage godown of 5000 Kg capacity at the advertised RGGLV location. The same piece of land for godown/ godown cannot be offered by more than one applicant for a particular RGGLV location against an advertisement The land should be plain, in one contiguous plot, free from live overhead power transmission or telephone lines. Canals / Drainage / Nallahs should not be passing through the plot. The selected candidate must observe and perform the provisions of all rules and regulations, Government or municipal or local or such like acts, laws, regulations, bye laws as may be enforced from time to time w.r.t. Land for construction of godown/LPG godown. The plot of land or ready LPG cylinder storage godown should be freely accessible through all weather motorable approach road (public road or |

|          | minimum 2.5 metre width is made available to provide access of LPG Cylinder Truck to the offered land for godown /LPG Godown. In case of private road connecting to the Public Road, the same should be either owned/registered lease or having a right of way from the owner(s) of the land. The selected candidate is allowed to make the approach road available within the time frame as specified in the LOI. 'Own' means having ownership title of the property or Registered lease deed having minimum 15 yrs of valid lease period commencing on any day from the date of advertisement up to the last date of submission of application as specified either in the advertisement or corrigendum (if any). The applicant should have clear ownership as defined above in the name of self / member of 'Family Unit' / parents & grandparents (both maternal and paternal) of the applicant as on last date for submission of application as specified either in the   | road) of minimum 2.5 Meter width. In case of private road connecting to public road, the same should either be owned/ registered lease or having right of way. The selected candidate is allowed to make the approach road available within the time frame as specified in the LOI. 'Own' means having clear ownership title of the property in the name of applicant/family member(s) of the 'Family Unit' or land belonging to parents & grandparents (both maternal and paternal) of the applicant as on the last date for submission of application.   |
|----------|-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Showroom | The applicant should own a suitable shop of minimum size 3 mtr. x 4.5 mtr. in outer dimension or a plot of land for construction of showroom of minimum size 3 mtr. x 4.5 mtr. as on last date for submission of application as specified in the advertisement or corrigendum (if any) at the advertised location i.e. within the municipal/town/village limits of the place which is mentioned under the column of 'location' in the advertisement. It should be easily accessible to general public through a suitable approach road. The same piece of land for showroom/ showroom cannot be offered by more than one applicant for a particular location against an advertisement.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        | Showroom is not an eligibility criteria for an RGGLV. However, a showroom of the dimensions 2.6 mtr. X 3 mtr. is to be constructed which could be near the Godown or in an existing nearby shop falling within a maximum distance of 500 meters from the Godown site in the same village.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  |

| Multiple dealership/ distributorship norm   | The applicant or any other member of 'family unit' should not hold a dealership/distributorship/RGGLV or Letter of Intent (LOI) for a dealership/ distributorship/RGGLV of a PSU OMC. Existing SKO dealers of OMCs operating below an average allocation of 75 KL of SKO per month during the immediate preceding 12 months prior to the month of advertisement will be eligible to apply under the category of individual applicant only and if selected will have to surrender their Kerosene dealership prior to issuance of letter of appointment for LPG Distributorship. Also, Multiple Distributorship norm shall not be applicable to retailers/ distributors appointed by PSU OMCs for exclusive marketing of NDNE LPG cylinders. However, in case of selection of any applicant who holds NDNE retailership/ distributorship or LOI of any OMC in his name or any member of 'Family Unit' will have to surrender their retailership/distributorship or LOI prior   | Same as for Regular Distributorship. Same as for Regular Distributorship.                                                                           |
|---------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Other                                       | Not be a family member of an employee of Oil Marketing Companies as on date of application. Be physically and mentally sound to be able to run the business. Neither have been convicted nor charges been framed by any Court of Law for any criminal offence involving moral turpitude/ economic offences. Not be a signatory to Distributorship/ Dealerships Agreement terminated on account of proven cases of malpractice/adulteration of any Oil Company or not having resigned from Sole proprietorship of any dealership/distributorship of any oil company in order to transfer the dealership/distributorship in favour of                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          | Same as for Regular Distributorship. Same as for Regular Distributorship. Same as for Regular Distributorship. Same as for Regular Distributorship. |

## Specific Eligibility Criteria for existing SKO Dealers of OMCs:

-  Existing SKO dealers of OMCs operating as a sole proprietor having an average allocation of less than 75 KL of SKO per month during the immediate preceding 12 months prior to the month of advertisement will be eligible to apply for LPG Distributorship.
-  SKO  Dealers  operating  as  a  Partnership  Firm  or  Society  or  Company  are  not  eligible  to apply.
-  He should not have been penalized for violation of Marketing Discipline Guidelines within last  5  years  preceding the date of advertisement or there should not be any proceedings pending against the dealership under Marketing Discipline Guidelines/ Dealership Agreement, Kerosene Control Order or ESMA.
-  Common eligibility criteria as specified above shall also be applicable to SKO dealers.

## 5. NON-INDIVIDUAL APPLICANTS

For  Regular  Distributorships,  Non-individual  applicants  can  also  apply.  Non-individual applicant means Government Bodies/Agencies, Societies registered under Societies Registration Act 1860, Charitable Trusts registered with Charity Commissioner of respective State Government and Companies formed under the Companies Act, 1956 are also eligible for applying for a Regular LPG Distributorship.

## 6. SELECTION PROCESS

A Committee of the concerned Oil Company will do scrutiny of the application based on the information given in the application. Selection will be done by draw of lot out of all eligible applicants. All applicants satisfying the eligibility criteria will be eligible for the draw.

However  in  case  of  RGGLV,  selection  will  be  done  by  draw  of  lot  first  out  of  all  eligible applicants  who  are  residents  of  the  Gram  Panchayat  of  the  advertised  RGGLV  location.  In case  if    no  eligible  candidate  from  the  Gram  Panchayat  is  found  or  the  list  of  eligible candidates from the Gram Panchayat is exhausted, then only the draw would be conducted from the list of eligible candidates residing in the Taluka/Tehsil  of the advertised location.

Candidate  Selected  in  the  draw  have  to  deposit  an  amount  equivalent  to  10%  of  the applicable Security Deposit, after which Field Verification of Credentials (FVC) of selected candidate is undertaken. The applicable Security Deposit is as under :

|                                   | Regular Distributorships   | Regular Distributorships   | Regular Distributorships   | RGGLV       |
|-----------------------------------|----------------------------|----------------------------|----------------------------|-------------|
|                                   | Urban                      | Urban-Rural                | Rural                      |             |
| Security Deposit                  | Rs 5.0 Lacs                | Rs 2.5 Lacs                | Rs 2.5 Lacs                | Rs 2.0 Lacs |
| Amount to be deposited before FVC | Rs 50,000/-                | Rs 25,000/-                | Rs 25,000/-                | Rs 20,000/- |

If  in  the  FVC  it  is  found  that  information  given  in  the  application  is  at  variance  with  the original documents and that information affects the eligibility of the candidate, then a letter would be sent by Registered Post AD / Speed Post pointing out the discrepancy. Candidature of selected candidate in such a case will be cancelled and 10% of applicable security deposit remitted by the selected candidate before FVC will be forfeited if false/incorrect/misrepresented information has been given in the application.

In  Field  Verification,  if  the  candidate  meets  all  the  requirements  as  per  policy  guidelines, Letter  of  Intent  (LOI)  shall  be  issued  to  him.  The  distributor  select,  after  receipt  of  LOI should fulfill the conditions specified in the LOI within a period of four months from the date of LOI.

## 7. BASIC FACILITIES REQUIRED FOR OPERATION OF LPG DISTRIBUTORSHIP  :

LPG  Distributor  should  have  a  Godown  duly  approved  and  licensed  by  Chief  Controller  of Explosives of Petroleum and Explosives Safety Organisation (PESO) for storage of 8000 kg & 5000 Kg LPG in cylinders for Regular Distributorships and RGGLVs respectively.

In case of Regular Distributorship, a Showroom of minimum dimensions 3 mtr. x 4.5 mtr. as per the standard layout is to be made in a shop / land located in the advertised location or locality as specified in the advertisement and it should be easily accessible to general public through a suitable approach road.

In case of RGGLV, a showroom of the dimensions 2.6 mtr. X 3 mtr. be made available which could be near the godown or in an existing nearby shop falling within a maximum distance of 500 mtrs. from godown site in the same village.

In addition to the Godown for storage of LPG cylinders and Showroom, Delivery Vehicles will be required for Regular Distributorships for effecting home delivery of LPG cylinders in the authorized area of operation. Based on the assessment of the market, the Corporation will advise  the  LOI  holder  the  requirement  of  the  delivery  system  to  be  put  in  place  before commissioning of the distributorship and subsequently any additional requirement with the growth in business from time to time. However, in case of RGGLVs, no delivery infrastructure is required as the LPG cylinders are given to the customers from the authorised licensed LPG Godown at applicable RSP.

In each case where an individual gets selected, his/her spouse (i.e wife/husband) would be made co-owner. Co-owner means spouse will be 50% partner irrespective of age, qualification and  employment.  Individual  applicants  are  not  permitted  to  enter  into  partnership  with anyone other than their spouse.

A person selected for the distributorship will have to personally manage the operation of the LPG Distributorship. He/she will not be eligible for taking up any other employment. If the selected  person  is  already  employed  he/she  will  have  to  resign  from  the  employment  and produce  the  letter  of  acceptance  of  resignation  by  the  employer  before  the  issuance  of Letter of Appointment (LOA) by the Oil Company.

## 8. GRIEVANCE /COMPLAINT REDRESSAL SYSTEM

Any complaints received against an applicant will be disposed off as under:-

-  Complainants will have to deposit Rs.1000/- as complaint fees through a demand draft in favour of concerned OMC  along with the complaint. Complaints which are not accompanied with the deposit of Rs. 1000/- will not be investigated.
-  Anonymous complaints will normally not be investigated.
-  Complaints  received  against  the  applicant  will  be  investigated  only  if  the  applicant  is selected  in  the  draw.  However  for  RGGLVs,  in  case  any  complaint  is  received  prior  to draw alleging that the same land/godown has been offered by more than one applicant
- for a particular location, such complaints will be investigated and till its disposal, further action for conducting the draw will be kept in abeyance.
-  Complaints will be entertained only if it is received by the office of the OMC within 30 days from the date of declaration of draw result.

In case of established complaint, suitable action would be taken as per the decision and the complainant would be sent a reply accordingly. Complaint fees of Rs. 1000/- remitted by the complainant shall be refunded only in case if such particular complaint leads to cancellation of candidature of the selected candidate.

## 9. SCHEME OF FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE TO SC/ST CATEGORY DISTRIBUTORSHIPS

The Selected Candidate for the location reserved under SC/ST category has the option to avail the following Financial Assistance Scheme :

| Parameter                   | Regular Distributorship                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           | RGGLV                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      |
|-----------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Financial Assistance Scheme | OMCs shall facilitate selected candidate in obtaining loan from scheduled commercial bank for providing LPG Godown, Showroom and LPG cylinder delivery infrastructure. In this regard, if the banks require any margin money to be invested by the candidate in providing the above mentioned facilities, OMCs shall extend Financial assistance by way of a secured loan towards such margin money. The margin money shall however be limited to Rs 1.0 Lakh for Urban market Distributorships and Rs 0.60 lakh for Urban-Rural & Rural market Distributorship or 20% of the total project cost against which the loan has been sanctioned by Bank, whichever is lower. The secured loan towards the margin money will be provided to Distributorships reserved for SC/ST categories at (SBI PLR + 1 %) interest per annum. This loan as well as interest will be recovered at the rate of 20% of distributor's commission. Adequate working capital loan at (SBI PLR + 1 %) interest per annum, for a full operation cycle of the operation of the distributorship will also be | Candidate Selected for RGGLV locations reserved under SC/ST category will be provided a secured loan of Rs 1.0 Lakh for construction of Godown/other facilities by the concerned OMC. This amount will be recovered on per refill basis at the rate of 20% of distributor's commission for 14.2 kg cylinders as per policy. For RGGLV locations reserved under SC/ST category, the concerned Oil Company will provide adequate working capital loan for operation of the RGGLV at an interest rate of 11% per annum on reducing balance. Both, the working capital loan as |

| provided. Both the working capital as well as interest thereon will be recovered in 100 equal monthly installments from the 13th month of commissioning of the Distributorship.   | well as interest will be recovered in 100 equal monthly instalments from 13th month of commissioning of the RGGLV.   |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|

## 10. SECURITY DEPOSIT

The selected candidate before being issued the appointment letter will have to deposit interest free refundable security deposit to the respective OMCs as under :

|                  | Regular Distributorships   | Regular Distributorships   | Regular Distributorships   | RGGLV       |
|------------------|----------------------------|----------------------------|----------------------------|-------------|
|                  | Urban                      | Urban-Rural                | Rural                      |             |
| Security Deposit | Rs 5.0 Lacs                | Rs 2.5 Lacs                | Rs 2.5 Lacs                | Rs 2.0 Lacs |

The amount deposited before FVC will be adjusted against the applicable security deposit.

OMCs will reserve the right to adjust any dues to it from the Security Deposit amount at the time of resignation/ termination. However, in case of termination of the distributorship is on account of proven malpractice, the said security deposit shall be forfeited.

## 11. COMMISSIONING OF THE DISTRIBUTORSHIP

A  candidate  who  has  been  given  the  'Letter  of  Intent'  (LOI)  would  be  required  to  fulfil  the terms and conditions as contained therein, so as to commission the distributorship within the stipulated time period. The selected candidate would be given training and has to clear precommissioning  quiz/test  by  scoring  qualifying  marks  that  is  80%.  In  case  selected  candidate secures less than 80% marks, re-training would be given and re-test conducted.

In case of RGGLV, in addition to the above the LOI holder is given training on  basic computer operating skills required for distributorship operations. A separate practical test is also to be taken by the selected candidate to know the basic computer operating knowledge, in which he has to score minimum 80% marks. In case selected candidate secures less than 80% marks, retraining would be given and re-test conducted.

RGGLV selected candidates having qualification only up to Senior Secondary i.e. (10+2) would be  required  to  acquire  basic  IT  knowledge/skills  before  they  start  operating  the  RGGLV distributorship. Such candidates will have to undergo a short duration course of minimum one month period conducted by a Computer Institute specializing in the area of Training/providing basic IT skills including various components and application areas of the computer system. The selected candidate would be required to submit a certificate of having completed such course before the commissioning of RGGLV.

Before commissioning, Letter of Appointment would be issued to the selected candidate and an agreement shall be executed as per the standard LPG Distributorship agreement.

## 12. TENURE OF DISTRIBUTORSHIP

The tenure of LPG Distributorships shall be as under :

| Parameter                      | Regular Distributorship                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 | RGGLV                                                                                                                                                                                                             |
|--------------------------------|-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Tenure of LPG Distributorships | The tenure of the HP Gas & Bharatgas distributorship shall be for an initial period of 10 years and renewable for every 5 years thereafter, subject to the examination of the performance of the distributorship by the respective OMC and decision thereon. The tenure of the INDANE distributorship shall remain in force for an initial period of 5 years from the date of execution of Distributorship Agreement and continue thereafter until determined as per rights mentioned in the Distributorship agreement. | The tenure of the RGGLV shall be for an initial period of 5 years subject to terms and conditions of the agreement and shall be renewable at the discretion of the Corporation in terms of prevailing guidelines. |

## 13. FURNISHING OF FALSE INFORMATION

If  any  statement  made  in  the  application  or  in  the  documents  enclosed  therewith  or subsequently submitted in pursuance of the application by the candidate at any stage is found to  have  been  suppressed  /  misrepresented  /  incorrect  or  false  affecting  eligibility,  then  the application/candidature is liable to be rejected without assigning any reason.

In  case  the  selection  of  the  candidate is  rejected  after the FVC or after issuance of LOI  but before issue of Letter of Appointment, then the 10% of the security deposit deposited by the selected candidate before FVC will be forfeited.

In case the selected candidate has been appointed as a distributor and the allotment is liable to be  cancelled,  then  the  distributorship  will  be  terminated  along  with  forfeiture  of  security deposit remitted by the candidate.

In such cases, the selected candidate / distributor will have no claim whatsoever against the respective Oil Company.

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