Ujjwala Yojana Helps Damoh Women Escape Kitchen Smoke

Sharing her experience with IANS, beneficiary Kesarbai Kevat said: “We received an LPG gas cylinder and now cook our meals using it. Earlier, cooking over a traditional fire used to cause health problems for me. I used to be ill all the time, but now it’s changed. I thank the Prime Minister for this initiative. I also benefit a lot from the Ladli Behna Yojana.”

Another beneficiary, Anita, highlighted the positive change in her family’s daily routine. “Earlier, we used to cook on a traditional wood-fired stove. Now, we cook on an LPG gas stove. Earlier, we had to deal with smoke, but now things are much better. All the credit goes to PM Modi and the Central government,” she said.

Bharti Ahirwal, also a beneficiary, told IANS: “The LPG cylinders are really helpful to us. Earlier, I used to face problems while cooking on a traditional stove, but now it’s better. I don’t face any problem now. I thank the government for this.”

Prime Minister Narendra Modi formally launched the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana in Ballia, Uttar Pradesh, in 2016. The scheme was designed to provide clean cooking fuel to rural and economically deprived households that had long depended on firewood, coal and cow-dung cakes. The widespread use of these traditional fuels had been associated with adverse health effects on rural women and contributed to environmental pollution.

The initial target of eight crore LPG connections by March 2020 was achieved in September 2019, when the Prime Minister handed over the scheme’s eight-crore connection in Aurangabad, Maharashtra.

An additional 1.6 crore connections were later approved under Ujjwala 2.0, with special provisions for migrant households. That target was met in December 2022, taking the cumulative total to 9.6 crore. A further 75 lakh connections were sanctioned for the financial years 2023-24 to 2025-26 and achieved in July 2024, raising the overall figure to 10.35 crore.

The government has now approved the release of another 25 lakh LPG connections, bringing the overall target to 10.6 crore. Distribution of these additional connections is currently under way across the country.

In Damoh, beneficiaries credit the scheme with transforming daily cooking practices and reducing the health burden previously associated with traditional kitchen smoke.