According to a study by the international public health organization Vital Strategies, families in Indian villages who switched to exclusively using LPG would save more than 1,50,000 lives annually because of the decrease in indoor and outdoor pollution caused by “chulha (wood/coal stove)” smoke in home kitchens.
The research presents a compelling case for the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY), arguing that the population’s improved health justifies the subsidies given to low-income families for LPG.
In India, household air pollution is still a major contributor to ambient air pollution, which disproportionately affects individuals living in rural areas and degrades the quality of the air in metropolitan areas.
The research notes that in order to significantly lower exposure to household air pollution and to improve public health at the population level, a sustained, nearly exclusive use of clean household energy is necessary.
“The government’s flagship program, PMUY, has brought in unprecedented access to Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) for impoverished households through the scaling of clean household energy,” the paper says.
One common fuel for cooking is LPG. However, a lot of homes still rely on solid fuel to meet their energy needs.
The research highlights the health benefits of long-term household LPG use over solid fuels by presenting findings from a cost-effectiveness analysis of various state-level subsidy possibilities.
According to the report, this transformation would also add over 37 lakh “healthy years” to the population.
According to the analysis, four states have the biggest population and the lowest LPG use, hence Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, and Madhya Pradesh would receive more than half of these benefits.
The report states that “the cost-benefit analysis for all the scenarios met the WHO threshold for a health intervention.”
Since “chulha” smoke adds to air pollution outside of residences, the reduction in PM 2.5 exposure would not be limited to residential areas.
According to the report, pollution levels have decreased as a result of the increased usage of LPG, which ranges from 4% in Telangana to 28% in Bihar.
As of August 1, 2024, 10.33 crore deposit-free LPG connections have been provided nationwide to women from low-income households through the PMUY program, according to information provided earlier this month to the Lok Sabha by Suresh Gopi, Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas.
In September 2019, the goal of releasing eight crore connections was accomplished.
The second phase of the Ujjwala 2.0 initiative was introduced in August 2021 in order to cover the remaining impoverished families. As of January 2023, 1.60 crore connections had been made available.
In September 2023, the government also approved the release of an additional 75 lakh PMUY connections in response to new demands.
As of July 8, 2024, the public sector oil marketing corporations have finished releasing these 75 lakh PMUY connections, according to the government.
