By Bizodisha Bureau, Bhubaneswar, June 20, 2016 : Some 30 lakh women in Odisha living the Below Poverty Line (BPL) will be provided with free LPG connection in the next three years, according to union petroleum and natural gas minister Dharmendra Pradhan.

Speaking at the launching ceremony of Prime Minister’s Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) in Sambalpur on Monday, the union minister said, “Over the next 3 years, 40 lakh households will benefit on account of new connections. Out of the above, 30 lakh households belonging to BPL families will be given free LPG connections. The implementation of the scheme will be undertaken by organizing melas in various villages and beneficiaries would be identified based on SECC data, prepared by Odisha government.”

Union minister for tribal affairs Jual Oram launched the PMUY and described it as a revolutionary step and is to be implemented in a transparent manner across the state.

The scheme was conceived by thePrime Minister Narendra Modi as a step towards empowering women belonging to poor households, Pradhan added.

Budgetary allocation has been made to provide poor women relief from smoke, drudgery and disease. The scheme will especially benefit women households situated in Eastern and North-Eastern states. Odisha, which has LPG penetration much below the national average, will be greatly benefited, Pradhan asserted

In India the smoke from fire wood, coal, dung cakes etc adversely affects the health of women as per World Health Organization Report smoke inhaled by women is equivalent to 400 cigarettes per hour, Pradhan added.