Dharmendra terms statement of Patro on PMUY failure as ‘misleading’

Bhubaneswar, Dec 15: Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Friday termed the statement of Odisha Food Supply and Consumer Welfare Minister Suryanarayan Patro’s statement on alleged failure of Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) in Odisha as ‘misleading.’

In a letter to Patro, the Union Minister said about 70 per cent families have refilled their LPG cylinders within a year under PMUY of which 4.2 lakh families have refilled their cylinders for the fourth time during the period. Under this scheme, 35.22 lakh families have been provided with LPG connection till December this year.

“Besides, as against 19 lakh LPG connections in Odisha in 2014, the number has gone up to 72.5 lakh in 2018. In terms of percentage, the LPG connections in Odisha have gone up to 69 per cent from 22 per cent during the period,” he added.

He said the Centre has provided subsidy to the tune of Rs 326.22 per cylinder to reduce the financial burden of the poor people.

The Union Minister said with his clarification Patro’s apprehensions will be removed and the state government will extend necessary help to make the scheme successful in the state.

Notably, Patro, in a letter to the Union Minister on Thursday, had said that due to the exorbitant cost of LPG refilling, the number of people who had availed the scheme three months ago has come down from 36 lakh to 8 lakh and now the number has slumped to about 6 lakh.

“This is a clear indication that the poor people have no paying capacity to get refilled cylinders,” he had said.