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The authorities has reduced the fig of subsidised cooking state cylinders disposable annually to beneficiaries of the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) from 9 to 4 aligning the enactment with mean household depletion levels, a elder authorities authoritative said connected Monday, PTI reported. Under the flagship strategy launched successful May 2016, beneficiaries were initially entitled to 12 subsidised 14.2-kg LPG cylinders each year. The quota was reduced to 9 cylinders past twelvemonth and has present been chopped further to four. At a media briefing, Praveen Mal Khanooja, further caput successful the ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas, said the revised entitlement broadly reflects the mean yearly depletion of Ujjwala beneficiaries. To beforehand cleaner cooking substance and amended affordability, the authorities introduced a targeted subsidy of Rs 200 per 14.2-kg LPG cylinder successful May 2022, credited straight to beneficiaries' slope accounts aft each refill purchase. The subsidy was accrued to Rs 300 per cylinder successful October 2023, with proportionate benefits extended to 5-kg cylinders. The latest simplification successful the subsidised quota comes amid repeated increases successful LPG prices.
The retail terms of a 14.2-kg LPG cylinder successful Delhi has risen by a cumulative Rs 89 successful 2 hikes implicit the past 3 months, including the latest summation connected June 7, taking the terms to Rs 942 per cylinder. After adjusting for the Rs 300 subsidy, PMUY beneficiaries wage Rs 642. Khanooja said the revised entitlement broadly matches mean depletion patterns among PMUY households. According to him, beneficiaries efficaciously person enactment of astir Rs 1,000 per cylinder erstwhile compared with the government's estimated proviso outgo of astir Rs 1,600 per cylinder. Cooking state prices were accrued by Rs 29 per cylinder connected June 7. "The summation comes to Re 1 per day," helium said, adding that for a household of five, the summation works retired to astir 20 paise per day. Khanooja said Indian households proceed to wage among the lowest cooking state prices globally contempt a crisp emergence successful planetary LPG prices pursuing disruptions successful Middle East. He said the outgo of supplying a home LPG cylinder has risen to much than Rs 1,600 owed to a surge successful planetary LPG prices aft the outbreak of the Middle East struggle astatine the extremity of February. India's LPG import costs are linked to the Saudi Contract Price (CP), the planetary benchmark for the fuel. The benchmark has risen astir 46% since February arsenic disruptions astir the Strait of Hormuz tightened supplies from the Gulf region. The authorities has provided Rs 52,000 crore successful LPG subsidies since 2022, helium said. Despite the caller terms hikes, lipid selling companies proceed to incur losses of astir Rs 700 connected each 14.2-kg LPG cylinder sold, Khanooja noted. He added that lipid companies are besides selling petrol and diesel beneath cost. The under-recovery connected petrol stands astatine Rs 6 per litre, portion diesel under-recovery is astir Rs 30 per litre. "Cumulatively, the lipid companies are losing Rs 600-700 crore," helium said, explaining the rationale down the terms increases. Apart from LPG, lipid companies person raised petrol and diesel prices by astir Rs 7.50 per litre each successful 4 instalments past month. CNG prices person besides been accrued by Rs 6 per kg.
