Ujjwala 1.0 to Ujjwala 2.0: How India fared in turning its PMUY dream of creating smoke-less villages into reality

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will launch Ujjwala 2.0 (Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana - PMUY) by handing over LPG connections at Mahoba in Uttar Pradesh today at 12.30 pm via video conferencing. During the event, the prime minister will interact with beneficiaries of the Ujjwala and will also address the nation. What is Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana? PMUY was launched by the Government of India on 1 May, 2016 with the aim to safeguard the health of women and children by providing them with a clean cooking fuel – LPG. PMUY aims at providing clean-cooking fuel to the poor households, which are otherwise vulnerable to various health hazards associated with indoor air pollution and bringing in qualitative charges in the living standards. Initially, the scheme proposed to provide Rs 1,600 per household to cover security deposit for a 14.2 kg cylinder as well as a regulator. Under the scheme, a deposit-free LPG connection is provided to the woman member of a Below Poverty Line (BPL) family. The cost of the hot plate and purchase of the first refill is borne by the beneficiary. The beneficiaries have the option to take a hot plate or the first refill or both on a loan basis from public sector Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) at zero interest rate. The loan is recovered through the subsidy received upon purchase of refill(s) by the beneficiary. It was originally planned to result in an additional employment of around 1 lakh jobs and provide business opportunities of at least Rs 10,000 crore to the Indian industry. The launch of this scheme was to provide a great boost to the ‘Make in India’ campaign. The main mantra of this scheme is - Swacch Indhan, Behtar Jeevan – Mahilaon ko mila samman (Clean Fuel, Better Life). During the launch of Ujjwala 1.0, a target was set to provide LPG connections to 5 crore women members of BPL households. Subsequently, the scheme was expanded in April 2018 to include women beneficiaries from seven more categories (SC/ST, PMAY, AAY, Most backward classes, tea garden, forest dwellers, Islands). Also, the target was revised to 8 Crore LPG connections. This target was achieved in August 2019, seven months ahead of the target date. The target of the scheme has already been achieved in September 2019. The implementation of PMUY has resulted in an increase in national LPG coverage from 61.9 percent as of 1 April, 2016 to 99.5 percent as of 1 January, 2021. As of 1 January, 2021, the total number of LPG consumers is 28.74 crore. Further, OMCs have commissioned 7,208 LPG distributorships from 1 April, 2016 to 1 January, 2021 to meet the increased demand of LPG consumers. As of 1 January, 2021, there are 199 LPG bottling plants running across the country. In a record time of 28 months left for its launch, PMUY achieved the initial target of providing 5 crores LPG connection to BPL households. PMUY has been recognised by World Health Organisation as one of the decisive interventions by the government to address Indoor Air Pollution, which accounts for nearly 10 lakh deaths in a year in the country. How has the journey from Ujjwala 1.0 to Ujjwala 2.0 been? In the Union Budget for FY 21-22, provision for an additional one crore LPG connection under the PMUY scheme was announced. These one crore additional PMUY connections (under Ujjwala 2.0) aim to provide deposit-free LPG connections to those low-income families who could not be covered under the earlier phase of PMUY. Along with a deposit-free LPG connection, Ujjwala 2.0 will provide the first refill and hot plate free of cost to the beneficiaries. Also, the enrollment procedure will require minimal paperwork. In Ujjwala 2.0, migrants will not be required to submit ration cards or address proof. A self-declaration for both ‘family declaration’ and as a ‘proof of address’ will suffice.