homeindia NewsIndia cuts cooking gas price by Rs 200 per cylinder – Minister Puri calls it a Rakshabandhan gift
India cuts cooking gas price by Rs 200 per cylinder – Minister Puri calls it a Rakshabandhan gift
The government on Tuesday (August 29) cut cooking gas price by Rs 200 per cylinder for all 33 crore beneficiaries. This will mean an additional subsidy of Rs 200 for all Ujjwala Yojana beneficiaries and come as a major relief for Indian households.
In an interview with CNN-News18, Hardeep Singh Puri, Minister of Petroleum, said this is a Rakshabandhan gift from the government and the Prime Minister to all his sisters.
Edited excerpts of the interview:
Q: A gift from the Prime Minister and from your government to women on Rakshabandhan?
A: Tomorrow is Rakshabandhan and I think in the true spirit of this festival, this is a gift that goes out from the government to all sisters. When a gas cylinder becomes Rs 200 cheaper, it will benefit those who are on marginal subsistence. People who are below the poverty line are already getting Rs 200 through direct benefit transfers in their accounts. I am happy to see it resonating very well.
Q: How does it work out?
A: It becomes Rs 200 cheaper for everyone. So hypothetically if the cost of a cylinder is Rs 1,100 it becomes Rs 900 now.
The 9.60 crore beneficiaries of Ujjwala Yojana were already getting Rs 200 subsidy through DBT, now in addition to that they will also get the cylinder cheaper by Rs 200.
When we started Ujjwala Yojana in 2016, we had taken it at 8 crore cylinders, then we increased it by 1.60 crore to 9.60 crore. Now we are increasing it further by 75 lakh beneficiaries, so it is a very big step.
Q: Would you say it is a political step because there are elections coming up?
A: Elections keep happening, this has nothing to do with elections. Globally petroleum and gas prices have increased, India is the only country where Prime Minister Modi has reduced the excise duty and kept gas prices stable. Since our Prime Minister is sensitive to the needs of the more vulnerable sections of the society, the price rise has been very limited as compared to other countries.
First Published: Aug 29, 2023 5:47 PM IST
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