New Delhi: India on Thursday assured Bhutan that it will not make it "suffer" and will proceed on the issue of gas and kerosene subsidy in "full consultation" with the new government there but maintained that "careful accounting" was required to ensure proper usage.
The assurance comes in the wake of Bhutanese request for a re-look at the decision to withdraw subsidy on cooking gas and kerosene provided by India. The letter by interim government chief Sonam Tobgye mentions the impact of India`s decision on Bhutan`s poor who depend on these commodities.
"There will be a government in few days. We will engage with them in discussion and find a solution. We will certainly not like to take any action which will cause any hardship to the people of that country. But we would need to go into some careful accounting just how much is exactly being used," top government sources said.
India has cut off the gas subsidy for a technical reason using the lapsed pact with Bhutan that expired on June 30.
Admitting that timing of such a decision could have been "handled better", the sources said that instead of writing directly to Bhutanese government, Indian Oil Corporation should have informed the External Affairs Ministry.
PTI
