New Delhi, Mar 17: The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas on Tuesday clarified that biometric Aadhaar authentication (e-KYC) for LPG consumers is required only for those who have not completed the process earlier and not for all domestic LPG users, amid reports suggesting a fresh directive.
In a clarification issued after some news reports circulated about mandatory biometric authentication for all consumers, the ministry said the recent communication was not a new direction but part of ongoing efforts to encourage LPG consumers to complete Aadhaar-based e-KYC.
The ministry said the requirement applies only to LPG consumers who have not done e-KYC so far. Non-PMUY customers who have already completed the authentication earlier do not need to undergo the process again.
For beneficiaries under the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY), e-KYC needs to be done only once every financial year and that too for receiving targeted Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) subsidy on the eighth and ninth refill.
Officials also clarified that e-KYC can be completed easily from home and is free of cost. They emphasised that LPG refill supply will not be affected in any case.
During the media briefing, a question was raised that oil marketing companies (OMCs) had reportedly started disconnecting LPG connections of customers who had not completed their KYC, and sought to know how many such connections had been disconnected and under what conditions.
Responding to the query, Sujata Sharma, Joint Secretary (Marketing and Oil Refinery) in the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, said the KYC requirement was not a new measure.
“This(KYC) has been going on for a very long time and no connection has been disconnected for the want of e-KYC,” she said.
Sharma further clarified that LPG bookings have not been stopped due to the absence of e-KYC.
“The important thing is that bookings are not stopped because e-KYC has not been done. No booking has been stopped due to the absence of e-KYC. But if PMUY consumers want a subsidy on the eighth and ninth refills, then they need to do e-KYC every year. So that’s the rule position,” she said.
The ministry claimed that Aadhaar-based e-KYC helps ensure transparency, establish eligibility, eliminate ghost consumers and prevent diversion of LPG cylinders.
