Government says, 200 cities across the country have been identified for the supply of piped gas in next five years. Replying supplementaries in the Rajya Sabha today, the Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas Mr. Jitin Prasad said efforts are being made to provide piped gas in all the regions of the country and nine new pipe line projects are being laid to cater the needs of South and Eastern parts of the country. He said the Ministry has now authorised the regulatory authority to take immediate decisions on the supply of piped gas. The Minister added the cost of the CNG has gone up as its production cost has enhanced considerably. The Minister said the priority sectors where gas is supplied are fertiliser plants and power. In reply to a question, he said CNG is not directly imported to India as it comes in liquefied natural gas form. Mr. Prasad said taxes and duties on CNG levied by the Centre and the state governments are lower than those on other transportation fuels like Petrol and diesel.