Over 4.5 Million Direct Cash Benefit Transfers effected in 20 DBTL Districts; Rs 187 crore cash transferred Directly to LPG Customers Accounts as on 20.8.2013

Continuing its successful run, over a4.5 million direct cash transfers have been effected to consumers’ bank accounts by 20.08.2013 under the Direct Benefit Transfer for LPG (DBTL) Scheme. These transactions amounted to Rs. 187.65 Crore transferred in the hands of LPG Consumers in the 20 districts. The DBTL scheme has been a resounding success which was launched on 1.6.2013 in 18 districts and on 1.7.2013 in Mysore district (Karnataka) and on 1.8.2013 in Mandi district (Himachal Pradesh in high Aadhaar coverage districts of 8 States and 2 UTs. The district-wise details of cash transfers are placed at Annexure I.            Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Dr M Veerappa Moily had recently approved roll out of Direct Benefit Transfer for LPG (DBTL) scheme in 35 more high Aadhaar coverage districts on 01-09-2013 in the existing DBTL States. With this total number of districts to be covered by DBTL Scheme would come to 55. This will add about 1.4crore LPG consumers in these 35 districts taking total number of LPG consumers to 2.12 crore to fall in the ambit of DBTL for receiving LPG subsidy directly in their bank accounts.  Further, roll out will be announced soon after a detailed review.  The districts which will be covered on 01-09-2013 fall in Kerala (12), Andhra Pradesh (7),  Himachal Pradesh (7), Punjab (5), Madhya Pradesh (2)  and one each in Maharashtra & Goa (details given in Annexure II). Government of India had envisaged launch of Direct Benefit Transfer for LPG (DBTL) scheme with an aim to curb leakages and prevent black-marketing and provide subsidy to consumers in their bank accounts.  In these districts the subsidy on LPG cylinders is being provided directly to consumers in their Aadhaar linked bank accounts. All Aadhaar linked domestic LPG consumers get an advance of Rs 435 in their bank account as soon as they book the first subsidized cylinder before delivery. As soon as, the first subsidized cylinder is delivered to such consumers, the next subsidy will again get credited in their bank account, which can then be available for the purchase of the next subsidized cylinder at market rate.      After the launch of the Scheme on 1-06-2013,  all LPG consumers in 18 districts who have not linked their Aadhaar number to LPG consumer number and their bank account have been given a grace period to do so till 31-08-2013. During this period they are continuing to get the LPG cylinders at subsidized rate, up to the cap of 9 cylinders. In Mysore the grace period ends on 30-9-2013 and in Mandi it ends on 31-10-2013.

After the end of grace period, LPG cylinders will be sold to all domestic LPG consumers at market price. However, the subsidy will be transferred to only those who have linked Aadhaar number to LPG consumer number and Bank account and others will not get any subsidy.            DBTL Scheme ensures that the benefit reaches intended beneficiary thereby curbing wastage/ leakage in the subsidy delivery system. In order to get LPG subsidy directly in to their bank accounts, all LPG consumers are advised to immediately do the following:                         1. Get an Aadhaar number if they don’t have one at Aadhaar enrollment centers.                         2. Open a bank account with the above Aadhaar number if they do not have one. OR       If they already have a bank account then they must get their Aadhaar number linked with their bank account by visiting the branch of the bank. They can also fill up a form available with LPG distributors and deposit it in the drop boxes placed at LPG distributors’ premises/ select Petrol Pump outlets for this purpose.                 3. Link Aadhaar numbers to LPG consumer number at LPG distributors (see website below).                   After completing the above three steps, LPG consumers can check whether their Aadhaar number has been linked to LPG consumer number and bank account at following website link: http://petroleum.nic.in/dbtl/linkstatus.html  Moreover, Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) have also provided the facility on their websites to check whether the Aadhaar number has been attached to LPG consumer number/bank account.  For feedback and for registering a complaint, customers can call on the Toll free number 18002333555 or visit their websites www.indane.co.in, www.ebharatgas.com or www.hpgas.com. Moreover, the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas (MoPNG), Ministry of Finance (MOF) and UIDAI have taken several initiatives to make the processes simpler and to expand the reach of DBTL to all LPG consumers. The MoPNGalong with Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) and Banks have undertaken multipronged efforts to educate the consumers to link their Aadhaar numbers to LPG consumer number and in bank account. Following steps have been taken to increase Aadhaar seeding in LPG and Banks: ·                Advertisements released in leading dailies. ·                Drop boxes to collect Bank-Aadhaar linking forms  placed at all distributorships/ROs and handing over to Lead District Managers for Banks. ·                Bank-Aadhaar linking forms being distributed to customers who have not yet linked Aadhaar to their bank accounts. ·                Delivery Boys are informing customers about need for Aadhaar linking while delivering refills. ·                Showroom staff are informing customers while receiving booking for refills ·                Cash Memos are being stamped to communicate need for Aadhaar linkage to get subsidy in bank account. ·                An Incentive scheme has been announced by Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) to encourage distributors to seed Aadhaar numbers in LPG database. RCJ/DBTL-III Annexure –I List of 20 Districts where Scheme is Operational

cxzAnnexure-II List 35 Districts to be covered from 01-09-2013 Courtesy: (pib.nic.in) Press Information Bureau