Jammu and Kashmir approves 6 free LPG cylinders a year for poor families

Rising inflation has already strained the budgets of poor families, and the growing cost of cooking gas has become a major burden for them. Amid this, some relief has come from Jammu and Kashmir, where the state government has announced that poor families will now get 6 LPG cylinders completely free every year.

The announcement was made in the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly by Satish Sharma, Minister for Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs. He said that the poorest families covered under the Antyodaya Anna Yojana, or AAY, will now be given 6 free gas cylinders every year. The government has formally approved this policy and administrative orders will be issued soon.

Notably, remote areas like Jammu and Kashmir and Leh-Ladakh get the most expensive cooking gas cylinders in the country. In Leh, a domestic cylinder costs Rs 1,179, while a commercial cylinder costs Rs 3,385.50. Given these high prices, the free cylinder scheme will be a major support for poor families there.

The question now is who will benefit from this scheme and how. The scheme is not for everyone, but only for those families who hold an Antyodaya Anna Yojana, or AAY, ration card. The manner of receiving the benefit is also somewhat different: beneficiaries will first have to buy the cylinder themselves, after which the full amount for the 6 free cylinders will be credited directly into the beneficiary's bank account through the Aadhaar-linked Direct Benefit Transfer, or DBT, system. According to the government, around 8.79 lakh Antyodaya cardholders in Jammu and Kashmir will directly benefit from this scheme.

The announcement stirred up the political mood in the Assembly. BJP MLAs raised the question that the election manifesto had promised 12 free cylinders a year, so why only 6 were being given now. The government clarified in response that all the promises made during the elections would be fulfilled in a phased manner over the 5-year term.