With the government announcing the rollout of Aadhaar-linked direct benefit transfer (DBT) for LPG consumers from June 1, banks in Mysore have stepped up linking the unique identification (UID) numbers of consumers with their bank accounts, to facilitate transfer of cash subsidy.
Mysore is one of the 20 districts in the country where the scheme for LPG consumers is being rolled out in view of high penetration of Aadhaar.
‘Seeding’ or linking Aadhaar details with the bank account is a must if consumers are to receive cash subsidy for LPG, which comes up to Rs. 435 at the prevailing rate.
According to Deputy Commissioner C. Shikha, coverage in Mysore district, which has a population of nearly 28 lakh, is around 92 per cent. The total number of LPG consumers is around 5.18 lakh, of whom 75 per cent have submitted UID number with bank account details.
Sources said the details of nearly 4.34 lakh consumers have been seeded so far.
According to a source, this is an estimate, as only the State Bank of Mysore clearly makes a note of the numbers being linked to the accounts for the sake of LPG subsidy. “The focus is now on seeding Aadhaar details of the remaining LPG consumers in the district to meet the June 1 deadline,” the source added.
Grace period
There is a grace period of three months for consumers — up to August 31 — during which they will receive LPG at subsidised rate even if they don’t have an Aadhaar number. If after that they still don’t get the number, they will forfeit the subsidy and have to procure LPG cylinders at the market rate.
Financial inclusion
Mysore is one of the few districts in the country where every household has been given a bank account number.
M.B. Chinnappa of the State Bank of Mysore and chief lead bank manager told The Hindu that the financial inclusion drive launched early this year was successfully completed and banks worked overtime to ensure that every family had at least a no-frills bank account.
There were more than 28 lakh bank accounts in the district, he added.
