New Delhi: Benefit of LPG subsidy will no longer be available to those consumers whose personal annual taxable income or that of his/her spouse exceeded Rs 10 lakh in the previous financial year, a new government ruling says.
“While many consumers have given up subsidy voluntarily, it is felt that consumers in the higher income bracket should get LPG cylinders at the market price. Therefore, the government has decided that the benefit of the LPG subsidy will not be available for consumers if the consumer or his/her spouse had taxable income of more than Rs 10,00,000/- during the previous financial year computed as per the Income Tax Act, 1961,” the Petroleum ministry said today.
The ministry wants citizens above the stated income slab to give up their subsidies on their own and has decided to initially implement this on self-declaration basis while booking cylinders from January 2016 onwards.
So far, 57.50 lakh LPG consumers have opted out of LPG subsidy voluntarily heeding the call given by the Prime Minister, a press release issued by the Petroleum ministry said.
“The subsidy saved from the ‘GiveitUp' campaign is being utilised for providing new connections to the BPL families under the ‘Giveback' campaign. This enables provision of LPG, a clean fuel, to poor households by replacing the conventional fuels such as kerosene, coal, fuel wood, cow dung, etc. relieving the poor of the hardships and health hazards from such fuels,” it added.
India currently has 16.35 crore LPG consumers in the country. With the implementation of the PAHAL Scheme (DBTL), the subsidy is being transferred directly to the bank accounts of 14.78 crore LPG consumers, the government informed.
