india

Updated: Sep 02, 2019 07:08 IST

The Centre’s Ujjwala scheme is likely to achieve this month the target of providing free cooking gas connections to 80 million poor households six months before the deadline set for them and its scope is likely to be expanded to cover more underprivileged families ahead of key assembly elections later this year, three officials aware of the development said.

Ujjwala is among the welfare schemes widely seen to have contributed to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)’s return to power at the Centre with a bigger majority in May.

“PMUY [Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana] is likely to achieve its target of 8 crore [80 million] connections this month [September] ahead of the March 2020 deadline. As on date [August 26], more than 7,96,81,650 [over 79.81 million] connections have been already provided under the scheme. In all likelihood, the scheme will soon be extended to cover more underprivileged households,” one of the officials cited above said on condition of anonymity.

Assembly polls are due in Maharashtra, Haryana, and Jharkhand this year and the expanded scope of the scheme is likely to benefit the ruling BJP, the official added.

The official cited data and said the scheme has over 7 lakh beneficiaries in Haryana, over 4.3 million in Maharashtra and over 3.2 million in Jharkhand. Uttar Pradesh has over 10 million and Bihar over 8.5 million Ujjwala beneficiaries, the official added.

The Union cabinet in February last year enhanced the target under the scheme from 50 million to 80 million connections with a March 2020 deadline. It allocated an additional ₹4,800 crore to fund the enhanced target.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi in May 2016 launched the PMUY nine months before the last assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh in the state’s Ballia district. The scheme played an important role in BJP’s return to power in Uttar Pradesh after over a decade.

₹8,000 crore were initially allocated for the scheme and the target was to ensure 50 million connections in three years starting from the 2016-17 financial year, officials said.

A petroleum and natural gas ministry spokesman confirmed the 80 million target would be achieved in advance. “GoI [Government of India] has reimbursed ₹10,675 crore to oil marketing companies [OMCs]… [under the scheme]. The process of providing connections is underway and the target of 8 crore [80 million] is likely to be reached soon by the OMCs,” he said.

Another official requesting anonymity said the government plans to set a new target after achieving the 80 million connections. “The idea is to provide free gas connections to every [family under the] BPL [below poverty line]. An announcement to this effect would be based on the assessment of PMUY after the 8 crore [80 million] target is met.”

Officials said state-run OMCs have received over 100 million applications from prospective consumers under the scheme and hence there is a scope to extend the scheme after it achieves the current target. Eligible beneficiaries will be chosen after a proper verification process to ensure that they do not already have connections in the names of their other family members.

Officials said the scheme has offered the poor clean cooking fuel option as about 86% of the beneficiaries, who have got the connections at least a year back, have bought second refills. Their average gas consumption is about 4.8 cylinders per annum, they said.

Under PMUY, a subsidy of ₹1,600 for a deposit-free LPG connection is provided to an eligible poor household, besides an interest-free loan to purchase a stove and refills, officials quoted above said. A connection is provided in the name of an adult woman member of a poor family and the beneficiary has an option to avail a connection with a 14.2kg or a 5kg cylinder.

India has over 240 million households. An estimated 100 million of them do not have cooking gas connections. They rely on firewood, coal, dung cakes as primary source of cooking, officials said. Most of them are under BPL. These beneficiaries are identified as per Socio Economic Caste Census data of 2011, officials said.