Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana Research Articles

Transition to cooking with clean fuels in rural households of India: Studying the effect of policy and other factors

The seventh UN Sustainable Development Goal is access to clean and affordable energy and cooking with clean fuels is essential to reduce the disease burden associated with indoor air pollution from solid fuel use. The Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) was launched in 2016 to target poor households belonging to disadvantaged caste and class categories and provided free LPG connections to these households to make clean energy accessible. This paper used binomial logistic regression modelling with rural household data from two rounds of the NFHS conducted in 2015–16 and 2019-21, to find whether a targeted intervention like the PMUY is enough to increase the use of clean fuels over solid fuels among rural households in India. The change in the effect of socio-economic and demographic factors affecting the choice of clean fuels for cooking are also studied to find their relative contribution along with the effect of policy. This analysis finds that targeted interventions have significant impact in bringing a positive change in use of clean fuels for cooking in rural households in India but there are other social and economic factors which also play an important role in sustaining the transition to clean cooking.

Constraints perceived in adoption of Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana in Rohtas district in Bihar

Constraints perceived in adoption of Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana in Rohtas district in Bihar

Assessing the Impact of Prime Minister Welfare Schemes on Beneficiaries with Special Reference to Tamil Nadu, India

This research article presents a comprehensive study on the impact of Prime Minister Welfare Schemes (PMWS) on beneficiaries in Tamil Nadu, a southern state of India. The PMWS represent a pivotal component of India’s social and economic development initiatives, aiming to uplift marginalized communities and improve their living standards. This study investigates the effectiveness and outcomes of these schemes in the unique socio-cultural context of Tamil Nadu.Tamil Nadu, a state with a rich cultural heritage and a diverse demographic landscape, serves as an ideal microcosm to investigate the efficacy and outcomes of these schemes. This research, conducted through a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods, aimed to assess the implementation, accessibility, and outcomes of various Prime Minister Welfare Schemes in Tamil Nadu. The study focused on beneficiaries across different age groups, genders, and socioeconomic backgrounds.Key findings from the research include an examination of the utilization of schemes such as Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (housing for all), Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (financial inclusion), Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (clean cooking fuel), and Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (income support for farmers), among others. The impact assessment encompassed several dimensions, including economic upliftment, healthcare access, women’s empowerment, and education.

Barriers in reusage and adoption of Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana

Barriers in reusage and adoption of Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana

Moving Beyond Clean Cooking Energy adoption: Using Indian ACCESS panel data to understand solid fuel suspension

Household solid fuel use has adverse impacts on health and the environment. The Indian government's Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) subsidy promoted the adoption of Liquid Petroleum Gas (LPG) by millions of Indian households. There is little knowledge, however, regarding decision-making to reduce solid fuel use after adopting cleaner fuels. Leveraging panel data on household energy use in rural India we jointly estimated LPG adoption and consumption to study the reduction in solid fuel use. Our results indicate that exclusive LPG use increased from 4.5% to 17.8% between 2015 and 2018 while fuel stacking (use of multiple fuels) doubled from 18% to 39%. The household's wealth index, self-reported higher social strata, business ownership, head of household's educational level, and the proportion of LPG-using households in the village were positively associated with LPG consumption and suspension of solid fuels. Distance to LPG refill delivery, household size and PMUY subsidy were negatively associated with LPG share though LPG share was positively associated with the interaction of PMUY with wealth index. Policy efforts should target sustained LPG consumption by making refill delivery more accessible and implementing a pro-poor refill subsidy as well as general poverty alleviation (e.g., by creating income generation opportunities).

Influence of indoor volatile organic compounds and its relative respiratory effects among children living in rural biomass cooking households of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh.

Exposures to volatile organic compounds (VOCs) cause respiratory symptoms among children, a known vulnerable group. Reports on exposures to VOCs and respiratory symptoms among South Indian children living in biomass-using households are not available thus far. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 313 rural children to assess the influence of emitted VOCs on their respiratory health. Standard analytical procedures for VOCs and Pulmonary Function Test (PFT), allied questionnaires, and all ethical considerations were fulfilled in the study. The increase in VOC concentrations was observed proportional to the amount of burnt biomass fuel in two selected sites in Tamil Nadu (TN) and Andhra Pradesh (AP). Houses cooked for more than 60min showed a remarkable increase in VOC concentrations and was observed as statistically significant (p < 0.01) in AP households. Among the younger children, the peak expiratory flow rate (PEFR) values were found significantly higher than comparatively older children in both the sites, TN and AP. However, the trend with respect to FEV1 is statistically significant (p < 0.01) among AP children. This study reports reduced lung function for a considerable proportion of the VOC-exposed selected children. Based on PFT, the children who were interpreted to be normal were found to be exposed to lesser indoor TVOC concentrations in comparison with the children of the households having restrictive or obstructive impairments. Diagnostic ratios with Benzene/Toluene (B/T) and Xylene/Ethyl benzene (X/E) confirmed the presence of VOCs-emissions from adjacent cooking fuels only. The observed results of this study recommends cleaner cooking fuel-use for better respiratory health among the citizens across the country, which in turn, in line with the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY), Government of India.

Perceived benefits of modern cooking technologies: a study of beneficiaries of Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana

PurposeThis paper examine beneficiary women's awareness of the harmful effects of traditional cooking fuels and the benefits of cleaner cooking fuel (LPG) in the Indian state of Haryana after the inception of Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana.Design/methodology/approachDescriptive statistics, factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, Mann–Whitney U test and Kruskal–Wallis H test were used for the data analysis.FindingsThe paper finds that the women of the scheduled caste were highly aware of the hazards of traditional cooking fuel. They perceived that the usage of LPG led to significant health and environmental improvements. However, the refilling was low among the respondents. So, the only low awareness was not the cause of the low refilling of LPG among Ujjwala beneficiaries.Research limitations/implicationsTechnological advancement, accessibility and successful adoption require convergence with socio-economic and institutional aspects. It was evident that focus on technology might not necessarily serve developmental purposes if it is not integrated correctly with socio-economic and institutional factors. These should have conversed with the household's needs, preferences, affordability, social structures, policy support and delivery mechanism, as it was observed that, in different cases, high-end technologies have limited access.Originality/valueThis study shows that the low awareness is not the barrier to the adoption of cleaner cooking technologies in India. So, the policymakers have to revive and further investigate the real cause of the low adoption of cleaner cooking technologies in India.

Energy Poverty and Human Development: Empirical Evidence from Rural Rajasthan, India

This study attempts to establish the linkage between human development and energy poverty for rural households and evaluate the impact of government schemes such as Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana, free electricity and unemployment allowance on human development. For the analysis purpose, primary data have been collected from rural areas of two main districts of the Shekhawati region of the state of Rajasthan in India. To pursue the objectives, two measures of energy poverty – energy deprivation and the multidimensional energy poverty index – and one measure of human development – the human development index – have been constructed. The primary survey of 1,000 households is conducted from January to March 2020. For establishing the empirical relationship, the study has used Tobit regression analysis. The findings confirm the hypothesis that the existence of energy poverty adversely affects the level of human development in the region. It also confirms the other side of the relationship, which states that increasing human development reduces energy poverty through various linkages. The study results reveal that the government scheme which directly contributes to the per capita income is also impacting positively human development through an increase in income. Hence, to improve the level of human development and to decline energy poverty, the study recommends policies to improve the overall level of income of households. JEL Classification Codes: I32, O13, O15, Q40

Attaining Social Inclusion through Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) in India

Attaining Social Inclusion through Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) in India

Constraints Perceived by Dealers and Households for Execution and Adoption of Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana

Considering the perception of the LPG dealers and households towards Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana, the current study was carried out in the Samastipur district of Bihar in 2022. A total of 110 respondents i.e., 100 women households and 10 LPG dealers were taken for the study from 4 villages of 2 blocks under Samastipur district. 21 specific constraints perceived by households and 18 specific constraints perceived by dealers were categorized into 4 broad constraints, viz., social, cultural, economic, and physical constraints. Analysis was performed by using Garrett’s ranking method, and specific constraints were ranked accordingly. Garrett’s mean scores of specific constraints ranged 29.38 to 73.41 for social constraints, 30.15 to 69.03 for cultural constraints, 27.73 to 71.77 for economic constraints, and 29.50 to 70.60 for physical constraints as perceived by households. The mean score of constraints perceived by dealers were 30.4 to 71.3 for social constraints, 31.5 to 73.5 for cultural constraints, 26.5 to 70.5 for economic constraints, and 34.5 to 66.7 for physical constraints. The paper may provides a better insight into the grassroots level constraints for implementation and acceptance of Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana in rural villages of India.

PS-P03-11: EFFECT OF CLEANER COOKING FUEL (LPG) ON CARDIOPULMONARY HEALTH IN WOMEN FROM RURAL MAHARASHTRA

Background and Objective: Air pollution generated due to the use of solid fuels is recognized to be an environmental and health risk globally, especially in developing countries. Exposure to household air pollution is estimated to kill 3.8 million people worldwide. Major victims are women who are the immediate users. In an attempt to address this issue, the Indian government launched the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) which provides clean LPG cooking gas to first-time users. However, it is majorly being promoted as a scheme about providing cooking gas to those who don’t have it but the health benefits of the scheme are not being focused. Accordingly, this study aimed to evaluate the effect of LPG on cardiopulmonary health in women. Design and method: A total of 997 healthy women participants (808 primary cooks and 189 secondary cooks) who cooked either with biomass or with LPG were enrolled. Systolic (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP), blood glucose was measured in all study participants and data on 24-hour personal exposure to fine particulate matter &lt; 2.5 μm (PM2.5) and lung function (by spirometry) were measured on a subset using a standard protocol. Socio-demographic data, cooking practices and other information were collected using a validated questionnaire. Descriptive analysis was done in SPSS v26. Results: Results highlighted that SBP, DBP, mean arterial pressure, pulse pressure and glucose level were significantly higher in the biomass group compared to the LPG group in both primary and secondary cooks. The prevalence of hypertension in primary and secondary cooks was 29.5 and 33.6 respectively in biomass users compared to 21.1 and 13.4 in LPG users. Higher number of obstructive airway pattern (n = 10; 6.4% vs n = 2 1.3%), restrictive airway pattern (n = 31; 19.7 % vs n = 19; 12.5 %) and small airway obstruction (n = 55; 35.0 % vs n = 22; 14.4 %) was observed in biomass group compared to LPG group respectively. After adjusting for age, BMI and study group, it was seen that biomass exposure index (odds ratio [OR] 2.288; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.169, 4.479, P = 0.016) and PM2.5 levels (OR 1.065; 95% CI 1.035, 1.096, P &lt; 0.001) significantly increased the odds of having hypertension. Conclusions: Based on preliminary analysis, it can be concluded that the use of biomass is significantly associated with an increased risk of hypertension and impaired lung function. Thus, adoption of cleaner cooking fuels like LPG will have meaningful clinical and public health benefits.

Impact of Ujjwala Yojana Scheme and Its Effect on Behavioural Changes Among Rural Women

Delivering multiple roles every single day, women are undoubtedly the backbone of any society. However, they have also been an ignored segment of the society in many parts of the world. To re-establish their rightful and distinguished status, empowerment programmes need to be started to provide a compact groundwork to encourage the inner strength and self-esteem for the rural women. This research contirubute to weaker section of the women in rural areas which uplift there standard of living through PMUJ scheme in Inida. The Government of India has initiated and implemented the scheme namely Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUJ)-Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) connection helping in a big way to rural women through empowering their livelihood and transforming behavioural changes from using cow dung cake, wood, kerosene to LPG in terms of improvement in health and increase the economic productivity by saving time spent on arranging cooking needs. The Ujjwala Yojana is aimed at substituting the unclean cooking fuels regularly used in the rural India with the clean LPG. It has been stated that nearly 38% of the world's population is still dependent on traditional biomass for cooking. But, in India, the women in rural area have limited access to cooking gas. According to experts, having an open fire in the kitchen by using biomass fuels is like burning 400 cigarettes an hour. Based on this background, this descriptive research paper analyses the impact of Ujjwala Yojana scheme and its effect on transforming the livelihood and behavioural changes among rural women in three select districts in Tamil Nadu, India. The sample unit in this study consist of rural women from eight villages covering six Taluk, who received LPG connection under PMUJ for cooking their food at home. The findings of the study revealed that, there is a positive impact and behavioural changes among rural women due to PMUY scheme.

A Plan to Exclude Ethnic Groups and Implement Partial Development Programme Under ‘Pradhan Mantri Ujwala Yojana’ in the Indian Subcontinent: A Case Based on Madurai District in Tamil Nadu

Madurai district in Tamil Nadu consists of three forestry regions such as Kurinji Nagar, Alagammalpuram and Mokathanparai as the residence of ethnic groups. The central scheme Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) found that it has no beneficiaries from the regions, and as usual the ethnic groups consume firewood with several difficulties. Hence, the study focuses on cooking energy consumers among ethnic groups as beneficiaries in detail under PMUY. A total of 108 households were chosen for the analysis which is the actual total number of households of ethnic groups in the district. Collected data have been tested by statistical tools, such as Chi-square and ANOVA, to know the relationship and the efficiency of factors, which influences the results that a majority of ethnic groups are expected to benefit under PMUY with free of cost, and they face climatic difficulties in traditional energy consumption.

Household air pollution and cognitive health among Indian older adults: Evidence from LASI

BackgroundPrevious shreds of evidence have suggested that ambient air pollution is negatively associated with cognitive health among older adults, but whether indoor air pollutants such as cooking fuel, tobacco smoke, and incense burning exposure affect the cognitive score is unknown, especially in limited-resource areas. MethodThe study has utilized the recently released data from the Longitudinal Ageing Study of India (LASI), Wave 1, conducted from 2017 to 2018. A total of 63,883 (≥45 years) older adults were considered for the analysis. Descriptive statistics, bivariate analysis and ordinary least squares regression were employed in the study. ResultsThe estimated mean cognitive score was 25.4 and the percentage of solid fuel users was 45.6 in India. The cognitive score gap between the two groups was more remarkable in Tamil Nadu (clean fuels: 29.7; solid fuels: 23.9). A significant cognitive score gap was observed for all indoor air pollutants, i.e., cooking fuel (clean: 29.7 and solid fuels: 23.9), exposure to tobacco smoke (not exposed: 25.7 and exposed: 24.4), and exposure to daily incense burning (not exposed: 25.9 and exposed: 24.8). The unadjusted model found that a one-unit increase of using charcoal/lignite/coal reduces the cognitive score by 5 (95% CI: −5.36, −4.61). A similar effect of exposure to tobacco smoke (β = −0.79, 95% CI: −0.89, −0.68) and incense burning (β = −0.28, 95% CI: −0.30, −0.26) was explored in the study. After adjusting socioeconomic and demographic characteristics, indoor air pollution was found to be a significant determinant of cognitive health. ConclusionsThe study has identified exposure to indoor air pollution as a risk factor for cognitive impairment among older adults. Therefore, we suggest an urgent need of promoting existing schemes like the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana and creating awareness about the adverse effects of indoor air pollutants for a better future.

‘Give It Up!’: A Macro-Social Marketing Approach to India's Clean Cooking Fuel Access

This paper examines how the Government of India (GOI) used macrosocial marketing (MSM) to address the issues of clean cooking fuel accessibility and affordability and structural inequalities in subsidy redistribution. It highlights a novel MSM application to address chrematistics in marketing systems. Two initiatives established by the GOI are examined. “Give It Up” encourages wealthier households to surrender liquid petroleum gas (LPG) subsidies, leaving these to poorer families, and Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) installs LPG connections for poor, rural women. The research explores how the GOI has addressed economic inefficiencies and structural inequalities, focusing on institutional norms and affordability, accessibility, awareness, and acceptability (the “4As”). The research expands the theoretical boundaries of MSM in relation to poverty and identifies its capacity to affect individual and systemic change through formal and informal institutional changes. Although new institutional norms were adopted, PMUY could not address the ongoing affordability of LPG, despite the changes to LPG subsidies.

The need to prioritize consumption: A difference-in-differences approach to analyze the total effect of India's below-the-poverty-line policies on LPG use

In 2016, India introduced the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) policy, which offers below-the-poverty-line (BPL) households a free liquified petroleum gas (LPG) connection. Simultaneously, the National and State governments implemented numerous health, housing, and other programs also targeting BPL households. Using a difference-in-differences approach with a non-equivalent comparison group, we provide causal evidence of the total effect of BPL policies on the probability of obtaining an LPG connection, overall LPG consumption, opting for home delivery, and clean cooking access. Using a two-part model of LPG use, the total effect of the policies is a 7.9 and 8 percentage point increase (46.4% and 50.0% change) in the probability of an increase in any positive LPG use for BPL households but no change in the magnitude of LPG use among households with any positive LPG use. We calculate that the overall increase in LPG use due to BPL policies was 0.68 kg per household. We find no effect for home delivery or cooking energy access tier. Our work suggests the need to expand the policy to address consumption more effectively. Finally, this analysis advocates investigation into consumption incentives and the size of the refill subsidy beyond simply improved targeting of BPL households.

Subsidized LPG Scheme and the Shift to Cleaner Household Energy Use: Evidence from a Tribal Community of Eastern India

Traditional fuels have both environmental and health impacts. The transition from traditional to clean cooking fuel requires significant public policy actions. The Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) is one of the primary policies launched in India to eradicate energy poverty among households. Past studies have focused on the drivers that motivate rural households to adopt clean energy and identified the bottlenecks for adoption of clean energy in developing countries. PMUY’s success in terms of scale and pace is critical in the national drive to provide access to clean energy fuel to each citizen. The present study focuses on two objectives. First, we investigate the intensity of adoption and refill of LPG under the PMUY scheme. Second, we use household and other demographic characteristics to examine the factors that influence households’ decision on using LPG as a cooking fuel. Empirical results show that rapid growth has been witnessed in the provision of subsidized LPG connections. However, the annual average refill status stands at two LPG cylinders per beneficiary household indicating that the majority of the beneficiaries have failed to refill their LPG cylinders. This imbalance between rapid enrollment of LPG and limited refill among beneficiary households indicate the continued usage of traditional sources of energy for cooking. From the primary survey conducted in the rural tribal communities of Odisha, we observe that household income and education played a significant role in adoption of LPG and continued usage of LPG gas. Additionally, the logit and ordered probit models identify that membership in self-help groups, accessibility and awareness of LPG are the major adoption drivers. In conclusion, policy makers need to address the challenge of refill status among PMUY consumers. Further, educating households on health benefits through SHG and creating accessibility at village level can actively increase the usage of LPG.

Cooking Fuels and Respiratory Infirmity in Rural Barak Valley: An Analysis of Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana Period

This study is an attempt to examine the fuel use pattern and its impact on the respiratory health of the users in the rural area of Barak Valley region of southern Assam. The effectiveness of Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) in mitigating the practice of unclean fuel has also been analysed in this study along with other related issues. The results based on personal information of 2,541 individuals from 530 households of Barak Valley reveal that incidence of respiratory illness is more profound in the households of solid biomass fuel users. The study further reveals that though PMUY has equipped the rural households with clean fuel connections but failed to change the fuel use practice of the beneficiaries. Among the barriers of clean fuel use practices, insufficient income of the households and availability of free and low-cost alternative fuels are found to be more prominent. The ordered probit model to examine the factors posing risk to respiratory illness reveal that women are at higher risk of developing respiratory syndromes as they spend more time in cooking space. While among others, smoking habit and age of the person are significant in increasing the risk pulmonary syndromes. JEL: I15, I38, Q52, Q58

Socioeconomic Status of Tea Garden Workers in Theni District of Tamil Nadu

ABSTRACT The study’s major goal is to determine the demographic profile and socioeconomic position of tea garden workers. The researcher used a descriptive survey method as well as stratified random sampling. One hundred and twenty tea garden workers were included as a sample for the study. The research technique for data collecting is a structured questionnaire. According to the research, forty-one percent of female workers and twenty-one percent of male workers are illiterate. The study also discovered that thirty-two percent and fifty-three percent of tea garden families cook with kerosene and firewood, respectively. According to the report, twelve percent of respondents do not have a savings bank account with any bank. According to the report, the government of India’s Adult Literacy Program, continuing education, Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana, and Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana initiatives may benefit all tea garden employees.

Barriers to and facilitators of uptake and sustained use of LPG through the PMUY in tribal communities of Pune district

The Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY), launched in India in 2016, is the world's largest program to provide cleaner cooking fuel to poor households. The PMUY may yield large health benefits because of increased LPG use, and more importantly, reduced chulha use, and thus may significantly reduce household air pollution exposures. This research, conducted in a tribal, difficult-to-reach area of Pune District, leveraged PMUY to study the uptake, adoption, usage, and health benefits of LPG. This work highlighted barriers to and facilitators of adoption and sustained LPG usage. Our findings have program implications and need to be addressed to ensure that poor households continue to use LPG as their primary cooking fuel.Our study indicates that most households expressed a desire to own an LPG gas stove but are not aware about the methods to avail the scheme and rely on the local governments to obtain the LPG. The perceived benefits of using LPG differ among people, depending on their own experiences. The most common perceived benefits include ease of use and less time spent on cooking. However, most people are unaware of the severe health effects of HAP, which, if known, might influence their decision to own and use LPG for cooking. The challenges in availing the scheme include varying registration amount, lesser awareness of the document requirements and multiple trips to the distributors' office to fulfil the documentary requirements. Further, the sustained use is hampered by the non-subsidized refills and unavailability of transport facilities for the refill replacement. Further, the beneficiaries are unaware that the subsidy goes towards the repayment of the loan and more clarity is expected from the distributor when availing the scheme.In conclusion, the population in tribal regions is willing to use the LPG regularly if the refill costs are subsidized. Further increasing logistical and financial support to rural distributors will help in better uptake.