LPG cylinder quota to be raised to 12

Govt responds after Rahul pleads with PM

New Delhi: With Congress party vice-president Rahul Gandhi making a strong pitch for raising LPG cap on Friday, Oil Minister M Veerappa Moily said the quota of subsidised cooking cylinders will be hiked to 12 from 9 per household. "Yes, the cap will be increased," Moily said soon after Gandhi made a demand to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at the AICC session here.

“Pradhan mantri-ji (Prime Minister, Sir), we cannot make do with just nine subsidized cylinders of cooking gas. Women in this country need more. We need 12 per family, sir, please increase the quota,” thus Rahul pleaded with the PM.

Moily, who till last week had maintained that there was no proposal for raising the quota of subsidised LPG cylinders a household is entitled to in a year, said the decision will be announced after the Cabinet approves of it. "The Cabinet will take a view (on it) soon," he said. Oil Ministry officials said they will move a proposal for the consideration of the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs or Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs once Moily instructs them to do so. If the quota is raised to 12, about 97 per cent of the LPG consumers would be covered by subsidised LPG, he had said.