'Poor level of LPG cylinder refills in Bengal is a concern'

Only 10-12 per cent of 30 lakh new LPG connections provided to BPL (below poverty line) households in West Bengal under PMUY going for refills is a matter of concern, an official said here on Monday.

R.K. Mohapatra, Executive Director, Indian Oil and State Level Coordinator, West Bengal Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY), expressed concern about "the poor level of cylinder refills" in the state, which is just "about 10-12 per cent of the new consumers".

"Thirty lakh LPG connections have been provided to BPL households in West Bengal under Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) within nine months of the launch of this scheme in the state," he said in a statement.

"They have to be made aware that a LPG cylinder is much cheaper than procurement of other sources of fuel like firewood which also creates health hazards from harmful smoke," Mohapatra said.

Oil marketing companies have fulfilled the annual target given to the state after the scheme was launched in the state on August 14, 2016.

Some 11.3 lakh out of the total of 30 lakh connections have been issued to Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and other economically underprivileged sections, Mohapatra said.

The state was marked as a priority state because of low LPG penetration of 51.5 per cent in comparison to the national average of 72 per cent at the time of launching PMUY.

The number of targeted beneficiaries in West Bengal is 1.06 crore which is to be achieved within the next two years, according to the statement.

"Data of BPL women who are the targeted beneficiaries of PMUY has been collected from Socio-Economic-Caste Census 2011. Over the next two years, the government has given a target for 95 per cent LPG penetration throughout the country," it added.

Under PMUY, LPG connections are provided in the name of women members of households having a bank account and Aadhar number.

Currently, Uttar Pradesh is leading in terms of providing PMUY connections.

In connection with catering to the state's LPG requirement, Mohapatra stated that a new bottling plant of IOCL, having a capacity to shelve out 250 TMT per day, will be commissioned at Panagarh in Burdwan district in March 2018.

Another bottling plant having an installed capacity of 120 TMT or 30,000 cylinders per day, is expected to be commissioned in March 2019, he added.

--IANS

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