Pradhan hits back at Patnaik for calling PMUY unsuccessful in Odisha

Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas Dharmendra Pradhan on Friday said that Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik's statement about the Pradhan Manti Ujjwala Yojna (PMUY) being an unsuccessful scheme in the state is "devoid of facts" and is "misleading".

In a letter, Pradhan said that over 35 lakh LPG gas connections have been provided in the state of Odisha under the scheme, while it has also helped entrancing the total number of LPG users in the state from 19 lakhs in 2014 to 72 lakhs in 2018.

The Petroleum Minister's letter comes after Patnaik said that the PMUY was a failure in his state because people could not afford refills owing to the high cost of cylinders. Patnaik made his statement at the Biju Janata Dal's (BJD) foundation day on December 26.

Pradhan said that the LPG coverage in Odisha has also been expanded from 22 per cent in 2014 to 69 per cent in 2018 due to the PMUY scheme.

"I am confident that with the recent decision of the Government of India to expand the scope of PMUY to achieve the universal coverage, the state of Odisha would scan achieve LPG coverage over 90 per cent" the Union Minister said.

Addressing the matter of refill by beneficiaries, Pradhan said that PMUY beneficiaries have consumed nearly 1.20 crore refills, adding that the per capita consumption (3.7 refills) is at par with the national average.

"This clearly indicates a marked behavioural change amongst the common man in Odisha to make a transition towards clean and sustainable source of energy. Society has acknowledged the relevance of the PMUY on account of its health benefits, environment dividends, time saved and utilized for gainful economic activities leading to empowerment of women," Pradhan said in his letter.