New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched Ujjwala scheme 2.0 in Uttar Pradesh via video conferencing on Tuesday. PM Modi interacted with the beneficiaries and discussed how the scheme has uplifted the lives of the poor especially women.
On this occasion, beneficiaries from Uttar Pradesh’s Mahoba received liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cylinder connections. Union petroleum minister Hardeep Singh Puri and UP chief minister Yogi Adityanath also attended the event.
Beneficiaries from Uttar Pradesh and Uttarkhand interacted with PM and thanked him for providing the scheme which made their lives easier.
After interaction with the beneficiaries and listening to their experience, PM Modi said that Ujjwala Yojana has benefitted lakhs of women. It reduced their time of cutting woods and even reduced health risks caused by the smoke of firewood. PM Modi said that the scheme is empowering women and making them self-reliant.
PM Modi also said that with the help of this scheme, women are saving a lot of time which helps them explore other skills and earn money. PM Modi said that the scheme has not only uplifted the lives of the poor but has built confidence in them which is helping them succeed in every field.
"Not wood log stoves, but LPG stoves should be there in every household across the country," said PM Modi.
UP CM Yogi Adityanath also addressed the event and thanked PM Modi for taking this initiative to launch the second version of Ujjawala Yojana which is benefitting lakhs of families by providing cooking gas to the poor.
Ujjwala Yojana in first phase
During the Union Budget for Financial Year 2021-22, provision for an additional one crore LPG connection under the PMUY scheme was announced. Along with a deposit-free LPG connection, Ujjwala 2.0 will provide the first refill and hotplate free of cost to the beneficiaries. The enrolment procedure will require minimum paperwork and in Ujjwala 2.0, migrants will not be required to submit ration cards or address proof.
In order to be eligible for the scheme, the applicant must be a woman over the age of 18 from a BPL family, she must possess a BPL & Ration card. There should also not be an LPG connection under the name of any family member of the applicant.
During Ujjwala 1.0 launched in 2016, the government targeted to provide Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) connections to five crore women members of below poverty line (BPL) households.
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 eight crores LPG connections. This target was achieved in August 2019, seven months ahead of the target date.