Many people belonging to the low-income group on Saturday staged a protest demanding the revocation of the direct benefit transfer (DBT) scheme for cooking gas cylinders, saying the scheme will hurt their pocket.
According to DBT, which New Delhi said will come into effect next month, the cooking gas cylinders will have to be bought at subsidised rates. Each cylinder will cost around Rs 940.
People will have to shell out more money before the subsidy amount (of around Rs 490) is reimbursed and transferred into their bank accounts for which they will need to submit relevant documents.
Most people in the low-income group said they are not aware of the new terms for buying cooking gas. Moreover, while many do not have bank accounts yet, others said they have connections registered in their parents' name and not in their own.
Protesters who staged a demonstration at Rehmati Chowk under the leadership of panch Surjeet Singh said the DBT was "anti-poor".
"My husband is a labourer, but for some time he is ill and most of our money is spent on hospitals and medicines. We cannot afford the gas at a higher price," said Gita Devi, a resident. She said her family could hardly afford even the subsidised cylinders.
{{/usCountry}}"My husband is a labourer, but for some time he is ill and most of our money is spent on hospitals and medicines. We cannot afford the gas at a higher price," said Gita Devi, a resident. She said her family could hardly afford even the subsidised cylinders.
{{/usCountry}}Another consumer, Surjeet Singh, said that the DBT has added to the woes of the poor people who were already being exploited by gas agencies.