Centre scraps 1 LPG cylinder/month rule

Consumers can avail 12 cylinders in their quota at anytime in a year

Ahead of the  Assembly elections in four crucial states, the NDA government on Wednesday lifted the restriction of one cooking gas cylinder per month to a household, allowing consumers to avail 12 cylinders in their quota at any time of the year. 

 An official statement said that according to the Union Cabinet decision that, “while 12 subsidised LPG cylinders per annum will continue to be supplied to all domestic consumers, there will be no separate monthly restriction of one cylinder per month,” an official statement said.

A decision to cut yearly LPG cylinder quota from 12 to six in a bid to reduce oil subsidy bill had cost the previous UPA government dearly as the Congress-led alliance lost in four state Assembly elections of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Delhi in 2013.

The NDA government is going to face Assembly polls in Maharashtra, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir and Jharkhand this year and it does not want issues surrounding cooking gas to affect its poll fortunes, sources said. 

On the other hand, lifting the supply restriction is bound to cheer consumers during the festive season.  

‘Decision to help people’

Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad later told reporters: “The Cabinet came to a conclusion that this system is causing problem to the people. Sometimes people do not need one.

Sometimes, during festive season demand is more. So, there was a feeling that if someone has not taken one cylinder on a given month, then in remaining months he wont get it.”

After Wednesday’s decision, consumers can avail their quota of 12 cylinders at the rate of Rs 414 each in Delhi at anytime of the year. 

Any requirement beyond this will have to be purchased at market price of Rs 920 per 14.2-kg cylinder.