NEW DELHI: Petroleum minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Thursday said the consumption of LPG cylinders by beneficiaries of the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Scheme has increased from an average of 3 cylinders per household when the scheme was launched in 2016 to 3.69 cylinders.
“It is not factually correct that some people did not take the cylinder after the first one,” the minister told the Lok Sabha, responding to a supplementary question on the scheme by BJP member Dhal Singh Bisen who said many people were not able to afford cylinder refills due to high prices.
“During this period (after the launch of the scheme in 2016), it has gone up to 3.69 cylinders per household. So, the consumption is going up and not coming down. The consumption typically depends on what a typical household needs. In my assessment, a husband, wife and two children, on an average, would need 3.5 or four cylinders at the most,” Puri said.
The minister also underlined that the price of LPG was linked to the international price but the government took steps to ensure that the price of domestic gas only went up by 28% though the Saudi Contract Price went up by 303% internationally.
“The price of LPG – because we are 55% dependent on imports – is set in accordance with the international price, which in the domestic Indian context is dependent on what is called the Saudi Contract Price. During the recent period, the Saudi Contract Price went up by 303% internationally. It went up from something like 260 to 960. But thanks to the measures taken by the government and the determined resolve of the hon. Prime Minister that we were able to confine the price of domestic gas to as little as 28% even though the international price has gone up to 303%,” the minister said.
The government also underlined that the total number of LPG connections, which stood at 14 crore in 2014, was also on the rise and has increased to 32.5 crore.
