Centre cuts domestic LPG price by Rs 200 ahead of Assembly polls in five states

‘Expect more such gifts in the coming months as the prime minister becomes even more desperate to cling on to his chair,’ Congress MP Jairam Ramesh said.

Aug 30, 2023 - 13:30

Centre cuts domestic LPG price by Rs 200 ahead of Assembly polls in five states

The Centre on Tuesday reduced the price of domestic liquified petroleum gas, or LPG, by Rs 200, months ahead of the Assembly elections in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana, Chhattisgarh, Mizoram.

A 14.2-kg LPG cylinder in Delhi was priced Rs 1,103. However, it will now cost Rs 903. The price of a domestic LPG cylinder is now Rs 902 in Mumbai while it is Rs 929 in Kolkata and Rs 918 in Chennai. The changes are effective from Wednesday.

The beneficiaries of the Centre’s Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala scheme, which provides a subsidy of Rs 200, will get the LPG cylinder at Rs 703. The Centre has also announced that it will provide an additional 75 lakh Ujjwala connections, taking the total beneficiaries to 10.35 crores.

The Bharatiya Janata Party government, however, said that the decision was announced as a “gift” for women ahead of Raksha Bandhan and Onam.

“This is a gift to crores of my sisters of the country on the occasion of Raksha Bandhan,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in an official release. “Our government will always do everything possible that improves people’s quality of life and benefits the poor and middle class.”