The Centre has achieved the 1.5 crore LPG connections set for the 2016-17 financial year in less than eight months till December end under the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY), even as 10,000 more distributors will be added to the network, Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said today.

The government has set a target of five crore connections for three years ending 2018-19, with 1.5 crore during this fiscal, 1.5 crore in 2017-18 and two crore in 2018-19, Pradhan told reporters here.

Stating that the target for 2016-17 has already been met by December end, Pradhan said that as against the national average penetration of 71 per cent, the Tamil Nadu penetration was over 85 per cent, barring nine districts.

He said that LPG connection was not only commercial one but a catalyst for socio-economic change, and considering the death of five lakh women per year due to usage of unhealthy fuels for cooking, the Government decided to provide connections to the people.

Stating that there were 13 crore LPG consumers in 2014, when the NDA government took over it has gone up to 19 crore and a target of 27 crore by 2020 was set, he said that the ministry will add 10,000 distributors to the present 80,000 to achieve this.

When pointed out that the petroleum ministry was blamed for the price rise of other commodities due to price fluctuation, Pradhan said that the government has reduced the petrol and diesel prices 25 times and raised 15 times, due to international price mechanism.

To a question whether the connections under PMUY were reaching and being used by the beneficiaries, he said that the ministry has records to prove that beneficiaries were using the connections, as usage of unhealthy fuels by villagers has come down drastically.

On digitising, Pradhan said that the ministry has identified 50 cities, including Chennai, Coimbatore, Madurai and Tiruchirapalli, which will have 100 per cent digital facility. Of the 4,554 petrol bunks in Tamil Nadu, 4,077 bunks have either Point of Sales machine or wallet, he said.

The government is trying to achieve near 100 per cent penetration in Tamil Nadu, by making inroads into the lesser penetrated districts of Pudukottai, Ariyalur, Thiruvarur, Villupuram, Perambalur, Nagapattinam, Dharmapuri, Thanjavur and Ramanathapuram, he said.

Pradhan, here to attend a convention of the All India LPG Distributors Federation, said that he has asked the gas agencies to focus on safety by spreading awareness about preventive measures and also about the insurance scheme by which Rs. 6 lakh will be given in case of death.

On plans to generate alternative fuel or producing more Ethanol, Pradhan said that the government has decided to start 11 Ethanol plants across the country, including one in Tamil Nadu, which will become operational in another two years.