Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has said that the government will provide 1.5 crore gas connections to women members of Below Poverty Line (BPL) families during the current fiscal and added that in the next three years the target is to provide gas connections to five crore women.
Pradhan added that the government has set aside a sum of Rs 2,000 crore in Union Budget 2016 to meet the initial cost of providing these LPG connections. He said that the scheme christened ‘Ujjwala’ provides a financial support of Rs 1,600 for each LPG connection to BPL households. The scheme will free women in rural areas from the curse of smoke while cooking and also will reduce the time spent on it. Pradhan said the scheme will not only have immense health benefits for women and their children by providing a clean cooking fuel but will also provide significant ecological dividends.
He further said that after Prime Minister requested people to give up gas subsidy, 96 lakh people have surrendered it and this amount is being used to give LPG connections to women in BPL families. The identification of eligible BPL families, as proposed in the Budget for 2016-17, will be made in consultation with the state.