The Union cabinet took a major decision to reduce the price of Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) by Rs 200 for all consumers on Tuesday. The Union Minister Anurag Thakur provided this information according to which this marks an 18 percent reduction in the price of a 14.2-kg cooking gas cylinder.Thakur also says that this approach is a gift from Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the all women of this country on the occasion of Rakhi and Onam.Moreover, members of the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) are also applicable for this price cut meaning beneficiaries will now get a total subsidy of Rs 400 per 14.2kg-LPG cylinder.Centre reduces domestic LPG cylinder price by Rs 200Read @ANI Story | https://t.co/1GVhVkcgh8#LPGcylinder #AnuragThakur #lpgprice pic.twitter.com/x6ZDEdrpi9— ANI Digital (@ani_digital) August 29, 2023Details about LPG price cutLPG prices have been reduced by Rs200 by the Union Cabinet on Tuesday. In Delhi, the price of a 14.2 kg LPG cylinder will now come down from Rs 1,103 to Rs 903. Similarly, in Mumbai, the LPG cylinder which presently costs Rs 1,102.50 will cost Rs 902.50 from Wednesday.This scheme is set to be effective from August 20. Moreover, additional subsidies can be enjoyed by the members of PMYU, approved by the Modi-led Union Cabinet. This means that beneficiaries of the governments Ujjwala Yojana will now get a reduction of Rs 400 per cylinder. Therefore, the price of LPG cylinders will now be Rs 703 in Delhi and Rs 702.50 in Mumbai for Ujjwala beneficiaries.Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana beneficiaries are already getting a Rs 200 subsidy, but they will also benefit from the decrease in the rate. That means the rate reduction for the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana beneficiaries will be Rs 400 per cylinder,” Thakur said.Reduction of cooking gas price comes right before electionsThe country will soon go through a phase of elections later this year. Five states including Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana, and Mizoram are scheduled to have their assembly elections in a few months.This move is believed to benefit low-income families as the country is grappling with high inflation and hit a 15-month high of 7.44 percent in July 2023 as the state elections and general elections of 2024 come nearer.Vinay Jaising of JM Financial Services says that this approach should not only be looked at from a political perspective. He says in an interview “If you look at it over a year, oil prices have actually moved down from $100 per barrel to $80 per barrel. And we are consuming about 50 percent of our net imports from Russia, which is probably at $70-75. So I think the OMCs have in the last quarter or two made disproportionate amount of marketing margins.”Modis Rakhi gift to Indian women During the announcement, Thakur said that PM Modi has been constantly making efforts for women empowerment since he took office in 2014. Moreover, 9.6 crore women have benefited under the governments PMUY.Thakur also said that 75 new gas connections will be set up under PMUY which will be free of cost, as a big gift from the PM to the women on the occasion of Rakhi and Onam. “On the occasion of Onam and the eve of Raksha Bandhan, Im happy to announce that the PM has given a big gift to the women and 75 lakh women will get free gas connections under the Ujjwala Yojana, free of cost,” he said.#WATCH | PM Modi has decided Rs 200 reduction in the price of domestic LPG cylinders, for all users…this is a gift from PM Narendra Modi, to the women of the country, during the occasion of Raksha Bandhan, says Union Minister Anurag Thakur pic.twitter.com/QTy6YB0x4u— ANI (@ANI) August 29, 2023Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) launched in 2016 is the governments initiative to help those who are below the poverty line. Under this flagship scheme, the government aims to provide five crore LPG connections to BPL (below poverty line) families with support of Rs 1,600 per connection in the next three years.Its primary goal is to provide clean cooking fuel for economically disadvantaged women and replace the traditional cooking techniques which rely on solid fuels such as wood, coal, and biomass
