Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday announced a cut of Rs 100 per cylinder in cooking gas prices on the occasion of the International Women’s Day. The price reduction, which comes just days before the likely announcement of the 2024 Lok Sabh polls, is set to benefit nearly 33 crore households of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG). For over 10 crore poor households covered under the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY), the price cut would be in addition to the existing subsidy of Rs 300 per cylinder.
“Today, on Women’s Day, our Government has decided to reduce LPG cylinder prices by Rs. 100. This will significantly ease the financial burden on millions of households across the country, especially benefiting our Nari Shakti,” Modi said in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
“By making cooking gas more affordable, we also aim to support the well-being of families and ensure a healthier environment. This is in line with our commitment to empowering women and ensuring ‘Ease of Living’ for them,” the Prime Minister said.
With this price reduction, the standard 14.2-kg domestic LPG cylinder would cost Rs 803 in Delhi, Rs 802.50 in Mumbai, Rs 829 in Kolkata, and RS 818.50 in Chennai. The price reduction announcement comes a day after the Union Cabinet approved the continuation of the PMUY subsidy of Rs 300 per cylinder for the financial year 2024-25 (FY25) at an estimated cost of Rs 12,000 crore.
This is the second instance of the government announcing a reduction in LPG prices for households in the current fiscal. Ahead of the Assembly polls in five states, a price cut of Rs 200 per cylinder was announced on August 29. At the time, apart from the price cut, the government had also decided to provide an additional 75 lakh PMUY connections, which would take the total number of beneficiaries under the scheme to 10.35 crore in a phased manner. Then in October, the government hiked the PMUY subsidy by 50 per cent to Rs 300 per cylinder.
There are two aspects to the cut in LPG prices. First, it could help in easing retail inflation further. Second, oil prices have declined from over $100 per barrel soon after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine to $80-85 per barrel, giving the public sector oil marketing companies (OMCs) more headroom to manage the cut in retail prices.
According to the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO), LPG is the primary source of energy for nearly 50 per cent of households in rural areas and about 90 per cent of urban households across the country.
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