PMUY launched in Jammu and Kashmir

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti today launched the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) in the state to provide free LPG connections to BPL households.
Apart from Mufti, Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas Dharmendra Pradhan and Minister of State in Prime Minister's Office Jitendra Singh gave away free LPG connections to 11 women from BPL households.
Speaking on the occasion, the Chief Minister said that the initiative, in line with creating smokeless villages across the country, has come as a moment of pride for the women in BPL households for getting LPG connection as an identity of their own and to lead a smoke-free, less polluted, convenient and healthy life.

PMUY was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in May, 2016. Under PMUY, five crore LPG connections will be provided to BPL families across the country during the next three years.
For Jammu and Kashmir, a target of 35 lakh connections has been set under PMUY out of which one lakh connections are to be provided during next 15 days.
Under the scheme, the enrolment of the BPL families have been made constituency wise all over the state and the deserving people shall be given free LPG connections along with a gas stove and a regulator.

Highlighting that such schemes are designed keeping in mind the welfare of the poor, the Chief Minister said that PMUY will benefit the poor, especially the women.

Providing LPG connections to BPL households will ensure universal coverage of cooking gas, Mufti said, adding that this measure will empower women and protect their health by reducing the labour and time spent on cooking.
Pradhan said the LPG would be made available to everyone in the state.
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Pradhan credited Minister for Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs (FCS&CA) Chowdhary Zulfkar Ali, and CM Mufti for making the Union Government extend the scheme to J&K.
Ali visited New Delhi number of times and held various meetings making everyone understand that mountainous regions should also be considered for PMUY, he said.

"It was after these meetings that the Union Government decided to extend the scheme to J&K and North East," said Pradhan.
Speaking at the function, Jitendra Singh stressed on the need to focus on development of the state.
"The present dispensation, both at state as well as at the Centre, are committed for the overall development of J&K. Whatever the situation be, people should never get distracted from the path of development," he said.