Over 17,000 priority ration cardholders have been identified as having liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) connections in urban areas such as Mysuru city, Nanjangud, and T. Narsipur towns so far, and the supply of kerosene would be discontinued to them soon.
Oil companies such as IOC, BPC, and HPL have been assigned the task of identifying priority ration cardholders possessing LPG connections. The companies are still carrying out its operation and in a span of another three to four months, they will identify cardholders having LPG connections and furnish details to the district administration.
K. Rameshwarappa, Senior Deputy Director of Food and Civil Supplies Department, told The Hindu that the government in a bid to convert all urban areas into kerosene-free and smoke-free places, had resolved to stop distributing kerosene to cardholders possessing LPG cylinders.
Those who do not have LPG connections would be motivated to get them and urban local bodies would financially assist them, Mr. Rameswharappa said. He said priority cardholders would be enlightened about the schemes and they would be enthused to avail schemes and get LPG connections. The aim for withdrawing kerosene distribution was health risks connected to cooking using kerosene, besides safety aspects. He said BPL cardholders could also get LPG cylinders under the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana under which the government aims to provide LPG connections to BPL households in the country.
The scheme is aimed at replacing unclean cooking fuels mostly used in rural India with clean and more efficient LPG.
Three litres of kerosene was being given to each priority cardholder and the total requirement of kerosene for Mysuru district was around 1,020 kilo litres per month. Now it has been reduced to around 600 kilo litres per month. There are over 1,79,000 cardholders.
