The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Friday approved targeted subsidy to Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana consumers. The Centre has approved a subsidy of Rs 200 per 14.2 kg cylinder for up to 12 refills per year. This will be provided to beneficiaries of PMUY, which stand at around 9.59 crore, as on March 1, 2023.
The total expenditure from PMUY for the year 2022-23 has been pegged at Rs 6,100 crore. For 2023-24, it will rise to Rs 7,680 crore, the official notification said. The PMUY subsidy gets directly credited to eligible beneficiaries’ bank accounts.
“Public Sector Oil Marketing Companies namely Indian Oil Corporation Ltd. (IOCL), Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd. (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd. (HPCL) have already been providing this subsidy since 22nd May, 2022,” the notification added.
“There has been a sharp increase in international prices of LPG due to various geopolitical reasons. It is important to shield PMUY beneficiaries from high LPG prices,” the government mentioned with the announcement. All PMUY beneficiaries are eligible for the targeted subsidy.
“Targeted support to PMUY consumers encourages them for continuous usage of LPG. It is important to ensure sustained LPG adoption and usage among PMUY consumers so that they can completely switch to cleaner cooking fuel. Average LPG consumption of PMUY consumers has increased by 20 percent from 3.01 refills in 2019-20 to 3.68 in 2021-22,” it said.
