File photo for representation

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will on Saturday fulfil, seven months ahead of schedule, his government's promise to help women in eight crore poor households breathe easy by replacing their smoky 'chulhas' (earthen ovens) with LPG connection and stove free of cost.

The PM will hand over the connection number eight crore under his government's transformational social sector scheme - Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana , commonly referred to as Ujjwala - at a function in Aurangabad, Maharashtra. It was launched on May 1, 2016 at Ballia in UP with a target of reaching five crore households by March 2019. This was later raised to eight crore households by March, 2020.

Ujjwala has given Modi the image of a leader who cares for the poor and keeps his promise. It has helped his government connect with the rural masses, particularly women and members of SC/ST households that have received 42% of the connections under the scheme. Politically it is seen to have resulted in handsome electoral dividends for the ruling BJP and its allies, starting with the UP assembly polls that the party swept in 2017.

The scheme showcases the Modi government's prowess in completing projects on time. Ujjwala also transformed the public perception about the oil ministry from being an economic wing of the government and a playground of corporate lobbies to that of the Centre's social welfare arm.

The ministry has come through with flying colours under the watch of Dharmendra Pradhan, who oversaw the operation.

The scheme has helped expand the use of LPG as cooking fuel to 95% of population in the country from 55% in May 2014, when Modi began his first term as the PM, and turned India into the world's second-largest domestic consumer of the clean-burning fuel after China. A recent study indicated LPG use easing chest congestion among rural women by 20%.

