New Delhi: The Union Cabinet today approved the release of an additional instalment of Dearness Allowance (DA) to Central Government employees and Dearness Relief to Pensioners, due from January 1, 2023. The Cabinet Committee of Economic Affairs (CCEA) further approved targeted subsidy to the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) Consumers, and the Minimum Support Price (MSP) for Raw Jute for the 2023 -24 season, as well.
The additional instalment of Dearness Allowance to about 47.58 lakh Central Governments employees and Dearness Relief to 69.76 lakh pensioners will represent an increase of 4% over the existing rate of 38% of the Basic Pay/Pension, to compensate for the price rise. The combined impact on the exchequer on account of both Dearness Allowance and Dearness Relief would be Rs.12,815.60 crore per annum. This increase is in accordance with the accepted formula which is based on the recommendations of the 7th Central Pay Commission, a Cabinet note stated.
Meanwhile, the subsidy of Rs.200 per 14.2 kg cooking gas cylinder for up to 12 refills per year is to be provided to the 9.59 crore beneficiaries of PMUY. The total expenditure will be Rs.6,100 crore for the financial year 2022-23 and Rs.7,680 crore for 2023-24. The subsidy is credited directly to the bank accounts of the eligible beneficiaries. Public Sector Oil Marketing Companies namely Indian Oil Corporation Ltd. (IOCL), Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd. (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd. (HPCL) are already providing this subsidy since May 22, 2022.
“There has been a sharp increase in international prices of LPG [Liquified Petroleum Gas] due to various geopolitical reasons. It is important to shield PMUY beneficiaries from high LPG prices,” the CCEA stated. The average LPG consumption of PMUY consumers has increased by 20 per cent from 3.01 refills in 2019-20 to 3.68 in 2021-22. All PMUY beneficiaries are eligible for this targeted subsidy. To make Liquified Petroleum Gas (LPG), a clean cooking fuel, available to rural and deprived poor households, Government launched PMUY in May 2016, to provide deposit-free LPG connections to adult women of poor households.
Moreover today, the CCEA, based on recommendations of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP), fixed the MSP of Raw Jute (TD-3 equivalent to earlier TD-5 grade) at Rs.5050 per quintal for the 2023-24 season to “ensure a return of 63.20 per cent over the all India weighted average cost of production”. The announced MSP of raw jute for the 2023-24 season is in line with the principle of fixing the MSP at a level of at least 1.5 times the all-India weighted average cost of production as announced by the Government in the Budget 2018-19. It assures a minimum of 50 per cent as the margin of profit, the CCEA stated, adding that it is one of the important and progressive steps towards ensuring better remunerative returns to the jute growers and incentivizing quality jute fibre. The Jute Corporation of India (JCI) will continue as Central Government Nodal Agency to undertake Price Support Operations and the losses incurred, if any, in such operations, will be fully reimbursed by the Central Government.
– global bihari bureau
