NEW DELHI
The central government’s announcement to reduce the price of cooking gas by Rs 200 by August end as a gift to the people for Onam and Rakshabandhan has been questioned by the Opposition as the move has come just ahead of five state elections and the upcoming Lok Sabha polls next year.
A 14.2-kg LPG cylinder in the national capital has come down to Rs 903 from Rs 1,103 earlier. The Opposition pointed out that in 2014, the price of gas was Rs 410 and within nine-and-a-half years, it was increased to Rs 1,100. “Many festivals have come and gone during this time; why the sudden change of heart now? Why the sudden show of mercy from the Centre after filling the treasury coffers for nine years?” senior Trinamool Congress MP Sougata Roy told The Sunday Guardian.
As per the Centre, when the Saudi Contract Prices and global LPG benchmark rose by whopping 303% during April 2020 and April 2022, the Prime Minister ensured that the domestic LPG prices did not rise in the same range and only 63% LPG price rose during the same period for domestic consumers, a statement said.
The increase in international prices that saw the price of petrol hovering between Rs 137 to Rs 147 per litre was never passed on to Indian citizens, though the Public Sector Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) suffered approximately Rs 28,000 crore in losses on sale of domestic LPG. The government approved a one-time compensation of Rs 22,000 crore to OMCs in FY 2022-23 to compensate for that loss, the government has said.
The fresh relief of Rs 200/cylinder to all the LPG consumers was in addition to already subsidised PMUY consumers, wherein they were given relief of Rs 200/cylinder announced during March 2023, incurring total expenditure of Rs 7,680 crore for FY 2023-24, the statement said.
It also pointed out that although LPG was introduced in India in the 1950s, yet till April 2014 only about 14.5 crore LPG connections were provided, leaving around 44% of the country’s households without access to clean cooking gas. The government will provide additional 75 lakh Ujjwala connections in FY23-24, which will take total PMUY beneficiaries to 10.35 crores.
In the last two years when international prices increased significantly, the government reduced central excise duty twice in November 2021 and May 2022, leading to a total reduction in central taxes by Rs 13 and Rs 16 per litre for petrol and diesel respectively.