With a view to provide clean fuel to poor families, the Modi Government has set a target to provide five crore lPG connections across the country in the next three years to those living Below the Poverty line (BPl), said Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas, Dharmendra Pradhan, during his visit to Vadodara on Thursday.
The Minister claimed that at least 1.5 crore such connections would be provided to beneficiaries in the current financial year as per the Union Budget proposals for 2016-17. These connections would be given under ‘Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana’, a financial support of Rs1,600 for each lPG connection would be provided to women from BPl households.
Explaining the significance of the initiative the Minister pointed out that approximately five lakh women die in India due to use of unclean cooking fuel.
Most of these women developed non-communicable diseases like heart disease, stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and lung cancer.
According to him the scheme was aimed at freeing women in rural areas from the curse of inhaling smoke while cooking and also saving time.
Apart from being good for the women, the scheme would also yield ecological dividends, said Pradhan, adding that these benefits would be given to those States where there are very few lPG connections.
Under the scheme approved by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by the Prime Minister, identification of eligible BPl families would be made in consultation with the State Governments, he said.
Under the ‘Give it Up’ scheme initiated by Modi more than 96 lakh people have voluntarily surrendered their lPG subsidy.