New Delhi: After the government raised the annual quota of subsidized cooking gas, the Cabinet today allowed consumers to buy more than one subsidized cylinder in a month.
The government had raised the annual cap on supply of cheaper LPG from nine to 12 cylinders of 14.2-kg each on January 30. It was inferred this meant one cylinder in a month.
This led to protests as households do not uniformly use one cylinder in a month and some require refills earlier.
The Oil Ministry yesterday moved a proposal for consideration of the Cabinet suggesting that consumers should have the freedom to book a refill after 21 days within the overall cap of 12 subsidized bottles in a year.
Sources said the Cabinet headed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh agreed with the proposal.
Raising the cap from nine to 12 cylinders will impose an additional financial burden of about Rs 3,801 crore per annum, they said.
The government had initially capped the supply of subsidized LPG cylinders to six per household annually in September 2012 in a bid to cut its subsidy bill.
