Majority of LPG connections in Ranga Reddy district, which are yet to be synchronised with Aadhaar card, may prove bogus after all. Officials suspect that at least 20 per cent of the connections, the UID numbers of which are still to be obtained, could belong to either fictitious persons or families holding multiple connections. Unofficial sources estimate it to be as high as 30 to 40 per cent.
According to data provided by dealers on May 15, only a little over 5.9 lakh out of a total 13.59 lakh LPG connections in the district got seeded with UID numbers. Over 1.27 lakh consumers have provided their enrolment IDs, the Aadhaar numbers of which will be eventually obtained and seeded.
Apart from these, officials have not heard from the rest of consumers, who form well over 45 per cent of the total. With district authorities claiming 99 per cent enrolment, and more than 100 per cent in urban areas to where majority of LPG connections can be traced, it remains a puzzle as to why the rest of the UIDs and EIDs are not registered with LPG distributors.
However, officials say that not all unregistered UIDs pertain to fictitious or erring consumers. Some of them could be using LPG cylinders registered long ago in others’ names, and some others registered under the ‘Deepam’ scheme might not have changed the connection in the name of another family member after the original beneficiary expired.
“We have been allowing transfer of connections from one name to another for the last seven or eight months. Quite a few people having LPG connection in others’ names have approached us seeking transfer. Now, we are also extending this to consumers registered under the Deepam scheme, under which gas connections are offered only to women,” said Narasimha Reddy, District Supply Officer.
If a family has no woman member left to whom the LPG connection can be transferred under the Deepam scheme, it will be transferred to any male member, he added.
Meanwhile, the Aadhaar process will be expedited for consumers who have registered their EID numbers with gas dealers. If the UID and bank account linkages are completed by May 31, consumers will begin to receive cash subsidies directly into their accounts. Others can avail their quota of subsidised cylinders till August 31, after which they will have to forgo the subsidy if the linkages are not done.
While the Aadhaar enrolment has been 99 per cent in RR East Division, it is 81 per cent in Chevella and 51 per cent in Vikarabad divisions. In the urban circles of Balanagar, Uppal and Saroornagar, the enrolment has been 129 per cent, 101 per cent, and 107 per cent respectively.
