Who is eligible to receive benefits under the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana(PMUY) scheme?
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: B
Explanation
Correct Answer: Women from BPL households
Explanation
The Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) was launched by the Government of India in May 2016 under the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas. The primary goal of this social welfare flagship scheme is to provide clean cooking fuel, like Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), to deprived and rural households, replacing unhealthy traditional cooking fuels like firewood, coal, and dried cow-dung cakes.
To ensure targeted economic empowerment, the scheme dictates that free LPG connections are explicitly issued in the name of the adult women belonging to Below Poverty Line (BPL) households or other specified economically vulnerable categories. Providing clean energy directly to women safeguards them from acute respiratory illnesses caused by inhaling kitchen smoke while reducing the structural time-burden of collecting firewood.
Key Points
The eligibility criteria require the applicant to be an adult woman (at least 18 years of age) whose household does not already own any pre-existing LPG connection from any public sector oil marketing company.
The scope of the scheme under Ujjwala 2.0 expands coverage beyond traditional BPL cardholders to include adult women from Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY), Most Backward Classes (MBC), forest dwellers, and migratory households.
Beneficiaries receive financial support from the central government that covers the complete security deposit of the cylinder, pressure regulator, safety hose pipe, domestic consumer card, and the first installation charges.
Important Questions and Answers
Question: Which central ministry is responsible for the implementation and regulatory management of the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana?
Answer: The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas handles the operation of this scheme.
Question: What structural facility is provided to PMUY beneficiaries to receive their recurring cooking gas financial subsidies?
Answer: Subsidies are credited directly into the verified bank account of the woman beneficiary through the Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) mechanism linked with Aadhaar.