Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday launched the Ujjwala 2.0 (Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana - PMUY) from Uttar Pradesh's Mahoba. The Prime Minister also interacted with beneficiaries of the scheme.
"As we will be celebrating 75th year of Independence this year and look at the progress in the past seven-and-a-half decades, we feel that some situation and conditions should have changed decades ago," the Prime Minister said in his address after the launch.
"For many fundamental needs such as road, power, hospital, cooking gas, school, water, home, people of the country had to wait for decades. This is unfortunate and women suffered the most due to this," he said. "How could the country become self-reliant without self-confidence," he added.
After the formal launch, the Prime Minister distributed free gas connections to 10 women virtually. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Adityanath handed over the documents to the women on behalf of the PM.
Interacting with the women beneficiaries, the Prime Minister said, "Before 2014, people had to take rounds of government offices for taking benefit of any scheme." "Our attempt is to ensure that benefits of schemes or resources reach all."
During Ujjwala 1.0 launched in 2016, a target was set to provide Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) connections to five crore women members of below poverty line (BPL) households. Subsequently, the scheme was expanded in April 2018 to include women beneficiaries from seven more categories (SC/ST, PMAY, AAY, Most backward classes, tea garden, forest dwellers, Islands). Also, the target was revised to eight crore LPG connections. This target was achieved in August 2019, seven months ahead of the target date.
In the Union budget for the financial year 2021-22, provision for an additional one crore LPG connection under the PMUY scheme was announced. These one crore additional PMUY connections (under Ujjwala 2.0) aim to provide deposit-free LPG connections to those low-income families who could not be covered under the earlier phase of PMUY. Along with a deposit-free LPG connection, Ujjwala 2.0 will provide the first refill and hotplate free of cost to the beneficiaries.
Also, the enrollment procedure will require minimal paperwork. In Ujjwala 2.0, migrants will not be required to submit ration cards or address proof. A self-declaration for both 'family declaration' and as a proof of address will suffice. Ujjwala 2.0 will help achieve the Prime Minister's vision of universal access to LPG.
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