SRINAGAR: The Centre on Thursday informed the Lok Sabha that all Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) LPG connections issued under the scheme remain active, with the number of beneficiaries across the country reaching about 10.58 crore as of July 1, 2026, including 12.81 lakh in Jammu and Kashmir.
Replying to Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 734 on July 23, Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas Suresh Gopi said PMUY, launched in May 2016 to provide deposit-free LPG connections to adult women from poor households, continues to cover beneficiaries across the country. The reply was made in response to a question by Rahul Gandhi.
According to the government, Jammu and Kashmir had 12,80,546 PMUY connections as on April 1, 2026, up from 12,30,997 on April 1, 2020. Ladakh had 11,081 connections, compared with 11,083 in 2020.
The minister said the government had assessed refill consumption patterns and found that the per-consumer consumption among PMUY beneficiaries stood at 4.71 cylinders annually in 2025-26. Based on this assessment, providing targeted subsidy for up to four refills a year was considered appropriate while ensuring efficient use of subsidy expenditure.
The reply said the recent West Asia crisis sharply increased international LPG prices, with the Saudi Contract Price rising to USD 796 per metric tonne in June 2026. Despite this, the retail selling price of a 14.2 kg domestic LPG cylinder was maintained at Rs 942, while PMUY beneficiaries continued to pay an effective price of Rs 642 after receiving a targeted subsidy of Rs 300 per cylinder. The government added that consumers also continued to receive an implicit subsidy through under-recoveries exceeding Rs 500 per cylinder in July 2026.
On refill usage, the government provided State-wise data showing that in 2021-22, 1,44,314 PMUY beneficiaries in Jammu and Kashmir did not avail any refill, 8,52,934 purchased between one and four refills, and 2,41,599 obtained more than four refills. In Ladakh, the corresponding figures were 696, 7,573, and 2,830** beneficiaries.
The government also cited a NITI Aayog evaluation report released in April 2026, which found that 86.59 per cent of PMUY households use LPG as their primary cooking fuel, while 74.27 per cent reported reduced indoor air pollution after adopting LPG. The report also recorded improvements in respiratory health, including reductions in cough, breathlessness, eye irritation, smoke inhalation, headaches and dizziness.
The reply noted that many households continue to use traditional fuels alongside LPG due to cooking preferences, seasonal needs and cultural practices, but said studies by TERI and IIT Kanpur had confirmed significant environmental and health benefits from increased LPG adoption under the scheme.
