Context

Himachal Pradesh has become the first LPG enabled and smoke free-state in the country due to the Ujjwala scheme of the Central Government and housewives welfare scheme of the State Government.

About

Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY)

• PMUY is a programme launched by the government on May 1, 2016.
• The implementation of the scheme is under the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas through its Oil Marketing Companies.
• The primary purpose of the scheme is to distribute LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) connections to the women of low households in India.
• The programme was initially launched with a budget of Rs. 80 billion.
• Initially, five crores BPL (below poverty line) households were targeted through PMUY; the target was achieved by March 31, 2019.
• An additional allocation of Rs 4,800 crore was done, and the target was expanded to benefit 80 million low-income families through the scheme.
• Under this scheme, towards an initiative for the loss by Covid-19 outbreak, the Finance Minister of India, announced to provide cylinders free of cost to the BPL families from March 26, 2020, for three months.

Liquified petroleum gas (LPG) Liquified petroleum gas (LPG) is a fuel used in many household appliances for cooking, heating, and hot water. It is called liquefied gas because it is easily transformed into a liquid. LPG composition is primarily propane, butane, isobutane, butylenes, propylene and mixtures of these gases. LPG is composed of liquid or gas (vapor), depending on pressure and LPG gas temperature. LPG needs only low pressure or refrigeration to change it into liquid from its gaseous state.

About Mukhyamantri Grihini Suvidha Yojana 

• The Mukhya Mantri Grihini Suvidha Yojana was launched on May 26, 2018. 
• With the concerted efforts of the Central and state governments, the women of the state had become free from indoor pollution. 
• Besides, to conserve the environment, a free LPG connection was given to families with no gas connection.

The progress Under the Ujjwala scheme, 1.36 lakh free domestic kitchen connections were given by the central government at a cost of Rs 21.81 crore while 3.23 lakh housewives were given Rs 120 crore under the Mukhyamantri Grihini Suvidha Yojana.

Need of the Scheme

• The objective of launching the scheme was to provide free gas connections to those families which were not covered under the Centre’s Ujjwala scheme.
• These schemes have reduced the dependence on wood for fuel. 
• The adverse effect of smoke on women’s health has also been relieved.  Due to these schemes, the standard of living of women has also improved.

Indoor air pollution:  It refers to the physical, chemical, and biological characteristics of air in the indoor environment within a home, building, or an institution or commercial facility.  A number of air pollutants have been recognised to exist indoors, including NOx, SO2, ozone (O3), CO, volatile and semi-volatile organic compounds (VOCs), PM, radon and microorganisms.