DBT scheme saves Rs 14,672 cr on LPG subsidy in a year:Govt

A total of Rs 14,672 crore is saved in LPG subsidy in a year as a result of direct benefit transfer, the government said today. An Oil Ministry statement said as on April 1, 2015, there were 18.19 crore registered LPG consumers and 14.85 crore active consumers implying a gap of 3.34 crore consumers which are duplicate/fake/inactive accounts. The duplicate/fake connections were blocked under the direct benefit transfer scheme, called PAHAL.

"If we take into account the quota of 12 cylinders per consumer and the average LPG subsidy of Rs 336 per cylinder for the year 2014-15, estimated savings in LPG subsidy due to the blocking of 3.34 crore accounts work out to Rs 14,672 crore, during that year," the ministry said in a statement. It said the subsidy outgo is a result of multiplicity of factors like prevailing crude price and exchange rate as well as tax structure in various States.