LPG prices reduced by Rs 100 ahead of polls

New Delhi: In the weeks leading up to the general elections, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a reduction of Rs 100 per LPG cylinder on Friday to ease the financial strain on households. The non-subsidised cooking gas price will be reduced to Rs 803 per 14.2-kg cylinder in the national capital from midnight of Friday/Saturday, according to official sources.

Prices differ across states due to local tax variations. The price cut is attributed to the easing of international oil and gas prices, which serve as a benchmark for domestic fuel rates. However, there were no changes announced for petrol and diesel prices, which have been frozen for a record 23 months.

All LPG consumers in the country purchase cooking gas at non-subsidised prices. Certain groups, such as impoverished women who received free connections under the Ujjwala Yojana and consumers in remote areas, receive a fixed subsidy per refill in their bank accounts.

“Today, on Women’s Day, our Government has decided to reduce LPG cylinder prices by Rs 100. This will significantly ease the financial burden on millions of households across the country, especially benefiting our Nari Shakti,” Modi said in a post on X.

This is the second reduction in cooking gas prices in six months.

The rates were previously reduced by Rs 200 per cylinder in late August, ahead of Assembly elections in five states, including Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. This brought down the prices from a nine-year high of Rs 1,103 per 14.2-kg cylinder to Rs 903, and now the rate has been further reduced to Rs 803.

“By making cooking gas more affordable, we also aim to support the well-being of families and ensure a healthier environment. This is in line with our commitment to empowering women and ensuring ‘Ease of Living’ for them,” the Prime Minister said.

For the beneficiaries of Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY), who receive a subsidy of Rs 300 per cylinder, a 14.2-kg LPG cylinder will now cost Rs 503 in the national capital.

The Union Cabinet, led by the Prime Minister, approved the extension of the Rs 300 per LPG cylinder subsidy to the Ujjwala Yojana for another year until March 2025. This move is expected to benefit nearly 10 crore families and will cost the government Rs 12,000 crore.

Cooking gas prices had increased significantly over the last couple of years and had become a major election issue.

The Opposition Congress party effectively used the high LPG prices in the 2023 Assembly elections in Karnataka. It had promised to provide LPG at Rs 500 per cylinder if voted to power in the Madhya Pradesh Assembly elections, prompting Modi’s BJP to make a similar promise.

While there are about 10 crore Ujjwala beneficiaries, the country has over 33 crore domestic cooking gas users. The government stopped providing LPG subsidies in June 2020, and cooking gas across the country was priced at the market rate, which rose to Rs 1,103 in the national capital in August 2023. To make Liquified Petroleum Gas (LPG), a clean cooking fuel, available to rural and deprived poor households, the government launched the Ujjwala scheme in May 2016 to provide deposit-free LPG connections to adult women of poor households. As fuel prices soared, the government provided a Rs 200 per cylinder subsidy to PMUY beneficiaries in May 2022, which was increased to Rs 300 in October 2023.