The Mahalakshmi scheme for the supply of LPG domestic cylinders at ₹500 per refill will apply to white ration card holders who submitted their applications during the Praja Palana held between December 28 and January 6.
The beneficiaries should have active domestic LPG connections in their name and the LPG cylinders which can be availed by the consumers will be limited to the average of the last three years of consumption of cylinders by the respective household. After announcing the launch of the scheme on Tuesday, the Government issued guidelines for the implementation of the scheme.
The Government had launched the scheme with the objective of women’s empowerment and providing them with smoke-free cooking medium. As part of the scheme, the State Government would transfer the required amount in advance to the Oil Marketing Companies (OMC) monthly. The OMCs on their part would transfer the subsidy amount by Direct Benefit Transfer to the accounts of the beneficiaries. The Government said the method of release of subsidy was on a pilot basis and directed the Civil Supplies and Finance departments to explore and come up with a model for delivery of cylinders on payment of Rs. 500 only.
The district collectors had been asked to monitor that proper awareness/publicity was given ensuring that eligible white ration card holders with active LPG connections benefit from the Mahalakshmi LPG scheme. The district collectors should also issue instructions to the field-level functionaries to monitor the supply of refills to eligible beneficiaries besides making arrangements for opening counters for registration, verification, and updation of the data of beneficiaries who might approach them to avail of the benefit.
