Recently, the Union government has taken a significant step towards ensuring access to clean cooking fuel for the masses. The announcement entails a price cut of Rs 200/cylinder for all LPG users, and notably, beneficiaries of the government’s Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) will receive an even more substantial reduction of Rs 400/cylinder.
About Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Scheme
- Objective and Implementation: Launched by Prime Minister of India on May 1, 2016, the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Scheme has the noble objective of safeguarding the health of women and children. It aims to provide them with clean cooking fuel, LPG, eliminating the need for them to compromise their health in smoky kitchens or venture into unsafe areas in search of firewood. The Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas administers this initiative with a budget of Rs 8,000 crore.
- Initial Target and Expansion: Initially, the scheme aimed to provide 5 crore LPG connections to Below Poverty Line (BPL) families with a support of Rs 1600 per connection within three years. However, in April 2018, the target was revised to 8 crore LPG connections. Crucially, these connections are issued in the name of women in households. While originally designed for BPL families, the scheme was expanded in April 2018 to include beneficiaries from seven more categories, ranging from SC/ST to forest dwellers, based on the Socio Economic Caste Census Data 2011.
What are the Challenges in Implementation of Scheme?
- Identification of Poor Households: Accurate identification of deserving households posed a significant challenge, as there was a lack of authentic data. Many deserving households were left out during the initial fieldwork.
- Misuse of Data: Some affluent households were erroneously listed as BPL households in the SECC-2011 data, complicating the verification process.
- Safety Awareness: Many beneficiaries, primarily from impoverished and less educated backgrounds, lacked awareness of the safety requirements for cooking with LPG.
- Document Availability: The absence of essential documents such as ration cards and Aadhaar cards prevented some deserving households from accessing the scheme.
- Limited Reach: In certain regions, the establishment of LPG distributorships faced challenges due to law and order issues or remote forest locations, leaving households disconnected from the benefits of cleaner cooking fuel.
Performance of Ujjwala Scheme (Phase-I)
The initial phase of the Ujjwala Scheme has yielded substantial results. The release of 8 crore LPG connections contributed to a remarkable increase in LPG coverage from 62% in May 2016 to an impressive 99.8% by April 2021. Notably, this scheme has positively impacted millions of BPL families across states, including Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, and Rajasthan.
Ujjwala 2.0 Scheme
In the Union budget for the fiscal year 2021-22, the government introduced Ujjwala 2.0, a phase of the scheme that seeks to provide an additional 1 crore LPG connections. A significant innovation in this phase is the simplification of documentation requirements for migrant families. Migrants will not need to submit ration cards or address proof; a self-declaration will suffice.
Recent Price Cut and Its Implications
In March 2023, the government had already approved a subsidy of Rs. 200 per 14.2 kg cylinder for up to 12 refills per year for Ujjwala scheme beneficiaries. The recent price cut of Rs. 200 per cylinder for all users, coupled with the inclusion of new beneficiaries under Ujjwala 2.0, is expected to cost the Union government a substantial Rs 37,000 crore annually. This move reflects the government’s commitment to ensuring that clean cooking fuel remains accessible and affordable to those who need it the most.
UPSC Mains Questions
- How can the government ensure more accurate identification of deserving beneficiaries for schemes like Ujjwala in the absence of reliable data?
- Evaluate the long-term economic and health benefits of expanding LPG coverage through Ujjwala, taking into consideration both the cost and impact.
- Discuss the significance of simplifying documentation requirements for migrant families under Ujjwala 2.0 and its potential impact on the reach of the scheme.
