Tribals dropping out of much touted Ujjwala LPG scheme

  • | Saturday | 12th January, 2019

“It is true that the Ujjwala Scheme was aimed at cutting down delivery of highly subsidised kerosene to BPL families. That means that even if LPG is used only minimally, the household would require a refill of the cylinder in about three months. As part of the scheme, the government waived connection charges and provided the connection (along with gas stove and a cylinder) at Rs 1,600. The more easily accessible and cheaper fuel is wood gathered from jungles. At the same time, the scheme was to ensure a smokeless house that would be important for the health of women, who mostly do the cooking,” the officer said.

Nashik: Five crore new Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) connections have been distributed to the people, according to the website of the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojna, launched in May 2017 by the Narendra Modi government to ensure that families living below poverty line can cook on a smokeless stove.Many tribal beneficiaries of the scheme, however, are choosing not to get a refill of the cylinder, indicating that they are dropping out of the scheme. “The average size of a family is about six people. That means that even if LPG is used only minimally, the household would require a refill of the cylinder in about three months. In more than 50 per cent of cases, refill orders have not been booked in four months,” a dealer in LPG in the tribal talukas of Trimbakeshar, Igatpuri, Kalwan, Dindori, Peth, Surgana and others, said.Clearly, LPG has not become the favoured cooking fuel in tribal households. The more easily accessible and cheaper fuel is wood gathered from jungles. This is easily available for the tribals and virtually free of cost. Sanjay Gavit from Peth said, “We collect firewood while out grazing the cows or headed to the hospital or school. It’s not like we set out just to collect wood, we pick it up along the way.”The major hitch in using smokeless fuel for the tribal household is the large sum needed to book a cylinder. As part of the scheme, the government waived connection charges and provided the connection (along with gas stove and a cylinder) at Rs 1,600. If the BPL family was not able to pay these charges, they were to be drawn from the subsidy given to the consumer as they book every refill.“I have to buy the cylinder at market price – currently Rs 660. The government subsidy has to be delivered to my account. But that is taken by the government as instalment of the cost of stove and cylinder. I am unable to understand how to pay this amount when I have no source of income other than in the rainy season, when I get the kharif crop. When all my family members are labouring in the fields to earn some money, how can I pay such a large sum” asked Vijaya Battase, a resident of Trimbakeshwar.District supply officer (DSO) Srinivas Arjun said he would talk to dealers of LPG companies to understand this issue. “It is true that the Ujjwala Scheme was aimed at cutting down delivery of highly subsidised kerosene to BPL families. At the same time, the scheme was to ensure a smokeless house that would be important for the health of women, who mostly do the cooking,” the officer said.

If You Like This Story, Support NYOOOZ

NYOOOZ SUPPORTER

NYOOOZ FRIEND

Your support to NYOOOZ will help us to continue create and publish news for and from smaller cities, which also need equal voice as much as citizens living in bigger cities have through mainstream media organizations.


Stay updated with all the Latest Nashik headlines here. For more exclusive & live news updates from all around India, stay connected with NYOOOZ.

Related Articles