Prime Minister Narendra Modi reviews progress of LPG subsidy transfer scheme

NEW DELHI: Prime minister Narendra Modi has asked for a professional evaluation of the direct benefit trans- fer scheme for LPG subsidies that now covers 9.75 crore consumers, as preliminary official data indicates that the sales of commercially priced, or unsubsidised, LPG cylinders have increased in 54 districts where the scheme is in operation.

Presiding over a meeting to review the direct benefit transfer scheme called Pa- HaL (Pratyaksha Hastaantarit Laabh), the PM directed that all 15-crore LPG consumers be brought into the scheme’s ambit speedily and “an impact analysis” be conducted in “a professional manner”.

So far, 9.25 crore transactions have been done, with subsidies of `3,654 crore being directly transferred to consumers’ bank accounts, a statement from the PMO noted.