Govt may do away with LPG subsidy for the rich: Jaitley

Currently, 12 cylinders are available to consumers at a subsidised rate of Rs 414 each in Delhi

The government is considering doing away with the cooking gas subsidy for the well-off, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said on Friday.

“The next important decision India will have to take is whether people like me...(are) entitled to get our LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) subsidy,” he said, at the HT Leadership Summit in New Delhi.

However, the finance minister did not elaborate on who constitute “people like me”.

“I think the sooner we are able to take this decision... the better it would be for our system,” he added.

Currently, 12 cylinders a year are available to consumers at a subsidised rate of Rs 414 each (in Delhi). Any requirement beyond this will have to be purchased at the market price of Rs 880 a 14.2-kg cylinder.

Jaitley said: “Once the political leadership, particularly the man on the top, has decisiveness, the most complicated of the decisions also become simple. One does not have to wait for years to decide on coal blocks or what to do with spectrum or natural resources, or with diesel pricing or with gas pricing.”

He said India was at a crucial stage, “where we must not exhaust our patience” as global investors are looking at the country with renewed interest.