LPG Consumers Can Avail 12 Cylinder Quota at Any Time of Year

New Delhi: In a relief to consumers, the Cabinet on Wednesday lifted the restriction of supply of only one subsidised cooking gas LPG cylinder to a household in a month, saying consumers can avail their quota of 12 bottles at any time of the year.

While raising quota of subsidised 14.2-kg LPG cylinders that a household can avail in a year to 12 from previous nine, the government had in February put a restriction of one cylinder per month.

"The Cabinet today came to a conclusion that this system is causing problem to the people. Sometimes people do not need one, sometimes during festive season demand is more. So there was a feeling that if someone has not taken one cylinder on a given month, then in remaining months he won't get it," Telecom and Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said in Delhi.

Briefing reporters about the decision taken by the Cabinet headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he said the restriction has been done away with.

"Today at the Cabinet meeting, looking at the benefit of people, that condition has been done away with. Now they will get 12 cylinders at subsidised rate," he said.

"This decision has been taken in order to remove the difficulty of people in India and consumers in particular."

After Wednesday's decision, consumers can avail of their quota of 12 cylinders at the rate of Rs 414 each in Delhi at any time of the year. Any requirement beyond this will have to be purchased at market price of Rs 920 per 14.2-kg cylinder.

"Previous government on February 28, 2014 had decided that 12 subsidised cylinders will be given to people. But there was a clause that you have to take 1 cylinder every month," Mr Prasad said.

Currently, the number of LPG cylinders a consumer can avail is 12. "Along with this, there is a restriction of one cylinder per month," an official statement said.

"The Government has now decided that while 12 subsidised LPG cylinders per annum will continue to be supplied to all domestic consumers, there will be no separate monthly restriction of one cylinder per month," it said.

This changes the earlier decision taken on February 28 and removes the restriction imposed that ordinarily one cylinder be given to each beneficiary every month.

"This decision of Government will alleviate difficulties faced by the genuine LPG consumers as the consumption of LPG cylinders is never exactly one per month. This change will meet their genuine requirements subject to their annual entitlement of subsidised cylinders."