Five days prior to the occasion of Independence Day, UP received the gift of Ujjwala Yojana. Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana 2.0 in which he virtually handed over free LPG connections to women beneficiaries in Mahoba on Tuesday.

PM Narendra Modi interacted with some of the beneficiaries of the Ujjwala Yojana through video conferencing.Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Adityanath handed over the documents to the women on behalf of the Prime Minister.

Congratulating the beneficiaries, the Prime Minister said that the scheme has illuminated and changed the life of a number of people and women in the country. “Our attempt is to ensure that benefits of schemes or resources reach all,” said the PM.

This scheme was started in 2016 from Ballia in UP, which is the land of Mangal Pandey, the harbinger of the freedom struggle.Today, the second edition of Ujjwala is also starting from the land of bravehearts, Mahoba in UP, he added.

Launching a scathing attack on the opposition, the PM said, “for many fundamental needs such as road, power, hospital, cooking gas, school, water, home, people of the country had to wait for decades. This is unfortunate and women suffered the most due to this. During the last 6-7 years, our government has worked on a mission mode to provide all facilities”.

Remembering Major Dhyan Chand, the son of Bundelkhand, the PM said that the name of the nation’s highest sports award is now Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award. Amidst the phenomenal performance of our young comrades in the Olympics, I am sure that this name of Dadda associated with Khel Ratna will inspire more youths to get inclined towards the sports, he said.

Mentioning about the work done by the government, the PM said that under the Swachh Bharat Mission, crores of toilets were built across the country. Ujjwala Yojana has given great emphasis to this resolve of health, convenience and empowerment of women in the county.

In the first phase of the scheme, 8 crore poor, dalit, deprived, backward, tribal families were given free gas connections. During the Covid period, the scheme has benefited crores of people. Now the labourers do not have to wander here and there for address proofs. All they need to do is give a self declaration of address and get the gas connection. The country is moving towards fulfilling the dream of a better life, from the fulfillment of basic amenities.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath thanked the PM for choosing UP for the second phase of the scheme. He said that the LPG connection numbers in the state has increased to 3.25 crore households.

At the launch, CM Adityanath said, “Through Ujjwala scheme, not only the environment was protected but it also emerged as a boon for safeguarding dignity and health of women fraternity.”

During Covid, PM Modi provided all the beneficiaries with free cylinders for 6 months. Before 2014, many people didn’t have LPG connections while those who had, would not get the cylinders, said the CM.

The state of Uttar Pradesh, under the guidance of the PM, have taken taken many steps for safeguarding the dignity and security of women in the last four years. ‘Izzat ghar’ have been built in 2.61 crore families of the state. Under the mass marriage scheme, more than 1,52,000 girls got married. Kanya Sumangala Yojana was started for the education of the girl child under which 7.81 lakh girls have been benefited. Pension of Rs 500 is also being given every month to destitute women in the state, around 29 lakh women are getting the benefit of this pension scheme, said the CM.

While informing about the expressways project, the CM said that almost 70 per cent work of the Bundelkhand Expressway has completed. By November 2021, this expressway will be ready. The work of Defence corridor is also going on at a rapid pace. More than 40 per cent work has been done under the ‘Har ghar nal yojana’ of Bundelkhand.

In the first phase of the Ujjwala Yojana scheme, 1,47,43,862 LPG connections were made available to the poor families of Uttar Pradesh. Those families that were left out in the first phase of the Ujjwala scheme will be benefited in the second phase.

During Ujjwala 1.0 launched in 2016, a target was set to provide LPG connections to five crore women members of BPL households.

On the occasion of World Biofuel Day which is also celebrated today, Chief Minister Adityanath and Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri would inaugurate the Biofuel Exhibition organized at the parade ground of the Police Lines in Mahoba district.

Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri was also present on the occasion.
In his address, Puri said that the use of wood and coal for cooking has adverse effects on health of women.