Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana

Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana, or PMUY, is a national initiative launched by the Government of India on 1 May 2016 to provide free LPG connections to women from Below Poverty Line (BPL) households. The scheme was launched with an initial target of providing 50 million LPG connections to BPL households over a period of three years. However, the target was later revised to 80 million connections, and the scheme was extended until March 2020.

Benefits
• The PMUY scheme has been a huge success and has helped to significantly reduce the use of firewood and other traditional cooking fuels by BPL households. As of 31 August 2023, over 90 million LPG connections have been
distributed under the scheme.
• The PMUY scheme has had a number of positive impacts on the lives of BPL households. It has helped to improve their health and well-being by reducing their exposure to smoke and other harmful emissions from traditional cooking fuels. It has also helped to save them time and money, as they no longer have to spend hours collecting firewood or other cooking fuels.
• The PMUY scheme has also had a positive impact on the environment. By reducing the use of traditional cooking fuels, the scheme has helped to reduce air pollution and deforestation.

Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana 2.0
In 2021, the government launched PMUY 2.0, an extension of the PMUY scheme. PMUY 2.0 aims to provide an additional 10 million LPG connections to BPL households.

Eligibility criteria for PMUY 2.0
• The applicant must be a woman above the age of 18 years.
• The applicant’s household must not have any other existing LPG
connection.
• The applicant must belong to any of the following categories:
o Scheduled Castes (SCs)
o Scheduled Tribes (STs)
o Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY-G) beneficiaries
o Most Backward Classes (MBCs)
o Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) beneficiaries
o Tea and Ex-Tea Garden tribes
o Forest dwellers
o People residing in Islands and River Islands
o Enlisted under SECC Households (AHL TIN)
o Any poor household as per 14-point declaration
The PMUY 2.0 scheme is a commendable initiative by the government to improve
the lives of BPL households and protect the environment.