PANAJI
For women trying to keep their kitchensrunning as household budgets tighten, the Goa government’s new Ujjwalaassistance has brought some ujala (brightness) to an otherwise increasinglyexpensive daily chore.
But this relief also comes with a pointedquestion about whether the Rs 3,000 annual benefit will remain a dependablesupport or prove to be another election-year promise?
The Goa Ujjwala Scheme, launched on September5, provides eligible households with assistance equivalent to the cost of threeLPG cylinders. The release of the first installment has been particularlywelcomed by homemakers, who stated that cooking gas has ceased to be a minorhousehold expense.
“It may look like a small amount on paper, butwhen you are managing a household budget, every rupee matters. LPG is somethingwe cannot do without,” Meena Nayak, a homemaker from Panaji, said. Naik’sfamily was among the early applicants soon after the launch.
Across Goa, women said the assistance couldnot have come at a more opportune time as household budgets are squeezed byrising prices and increases in LPG costs since the escalation of the US-Iranconflict. With the festive season adding another layer of expense, many saideven routine kitchen purchases were beginning to weigh heavily on familyfinances.
“Not only LPG prices, but the prices of otheressential commodities have also gone up. It felt like wholesale inflation,”Nayak said, as the opinion was also echoed by Ponda-based Deepa Mainkar.
But along with the relief are apprehensionsover the scheme’s continuity, besides concerns over when the nextthree-cylinder benefit will be released.
Sharmila Kamat said the real test would bewhether the assistance endures, even as her family hailed the initiative. “Wewelcome the scheme. It is on par with the Griha Aadhar and Dayanand SocialSecurity Scheme benefits. But what happens after the Assembly polls next year?Women need a scheme they can depend on, not one that possibly disappears afterthe polls,” she said.
Margao resident Rupa Rodrigues too stated thefirst installment is a welcome move, but the government would be judged onwhether the assistance would last longer. “If the government is serious, itshould assure us that this will continue,” she added.
The decision to give priority to womenapplicants has also found favour, particularly because an LPG connection neednot necessarily be registered in a woman’s name.
“In many Goan families, the gas connection isin the husband’s or another family member’s name, but it is the woman who runsthe kitchen and manages the household expenses. Giving women priority makessense,” Nayak said.
The scheme has no income ceiling, but only onedomestic LPG connection per family will qualify. Assistance will also covereligible Piped Natural Gas consumers.
While releasing the first installment onThursday, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant said women applicants would be givenpriority and male applicants in the subsequent instalment.
The Civil Supplies Department has earmarked Rs100 crore for the scheme, in which even the existing women beneficiaries ofGriha Aadhar and DSS can apply through panchayat or municipal offices. Theopen-category applicants are provided with a separate application form.
