4.08 crore LPG connections blocked to curb misuse of subsidy

The Hindu

4 hours ago

The Direct Benefit Transfer of LPG (DBTL) of the Centre, under which domestic cooking gas subsidy is paid into the bank account of consumers has helped block, suspend or deactivate 4.08 crore duplicate, fake/non-existent or inactive liquefied petroleum gas connections.
The DBTL or PAHAL scheme has played a crucial role in identifying and blocking 'ghost' accounts, multiple accounts, and inactive LPG connections, thus curbing diversion of subsidised LPG for commercial use, Petroleum Minister Hardeep S. Puri said in a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha.
Sharing details as on July 1, 2025, the Minister said the scheme, whose implementation began in January 2015, has contributed to transparent and effective disbursal of subsidies across the country. Besides the scheme, other initiatives like Aadhaar-based verification, biometric authentication and the weeding out of ineligible or duplicate connections resulted in significantly strengthening the system of transfer of targeted subsidies.
All domestic LPG cylinders are sold at non-subsidised prices and the subsidy transferred directly to the respective bank accounts under the DBTL scheme, he said.
Common database
The government has also introduced a Common LPG Database Platform (CLDP) through which duplicate connections are identified and removed from the database. Deduplication is carried out using Aadhaar number, bank account details, AHL TIN number, ration card details, name, and address as key parameters. Aadhaar-based authentication for DBT schemes enables accurate, real-time and cost-effective identification, authentication and de-duplication of beneficiaries, ensuring targeted delivery of benefits.
Public sector oil marketing companies have been advised to undertake and complete biometric Aadhaar authentication of PMUY and PAHAL beneficiaries. As of July 1, biometric Aadhaar authentication has been completed for 67% of Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) beneficiaries. All new PMUY consumers have to undergo biometric authentication before release of connections, a release from the Ministry on Mr .Puri's reply said.
Out of a total 33.05 crore active LPG consumers, 92.44% have their Aadhaar seeded in the OMCs' database. 86.78% of the total 30.63 crore DBTL consumers are Aadhaar-transfer compliant. While most subsidy transactions are completed successfully within two days of refill delivery, certain issues have led to transaction failures, including deseeding of Aadhaar from bank accounts, bank mergers, inactive Aadhaar numbers and account closures or transfers. Focused efforts are being made to ensure all consumers become Aadhaar transfer compliant, the Minister added.