-The Hindu 65% of Indians and a third of the global population had higher PM2.5 exposures during the lockdown, largely attributed to biomass cooking activity During COVID-19 lockdowns, many countries observed historic improvements in ambient air quality. Our new study shows that despite the historic improvements in ambient air quality, PM2.5 exposures increased for 65% of Indians and a third of the global population during the lockdown, largely attributed to biomass cooking...
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Health first, fiscal prudence later -Abhishek Jain and Karthik Ganesan
-The Hindu The government can balance LPG subsidies and ensure clean fuel consumption in poorer households Subsidised LPG prices have increased by a massive 50% in this financial year alone, consistently capturing headlines. What would be the impact of this in sustaining the gains of the government’s flagship scheme, the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY)? Since 2016, PMUY has provided LPG connections to 8 million poor households to reduce women’s drudgery and indoor...
More »Smog does affect health but there is no data on the problem's magnitude -Soumi Roy Chowdhury & Sanjib Pohit
-The Indian Express While we do not question the basic premise that air pollution has adverse health impact, we are sceptical about the figures quoted and the methodology adopted in estimating the cost. In the past three years, several studies have linked air pollution with health effects. For instance, the State of Global Air 2019, published by the Health Effects Institute (HEI), claimed exposure to outdoor and Indoor Air Pollution contributed...
More »About 85% of Ujjwala beneficiaries in four States still use earthen stoves -Priscilla Jebaraj
-The Hindu Study recommends that the scheme should move beyond benefits for women alone to change household behaviour NEW DELHI: The hidden truth of the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojna (PMUY), being touted in the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) election campaigning as one of the big successes of the incumbent government, is that most rural households with LPG (liquiefied petroleum gas) connections still use chulhas with firewood or dung cakes, to the detriment...
More »What Has the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana Achieved So Far? -Ashwini Dabadge, Ashok Sreenivas & Ann Josey
-Economic and Political Weekly The central government’s flagship programme to provide free liquefied petroleum gas connections has been in operation for two years, providing more than 3.5 crore free LPG connections to poor women. This much-needed scheme is a major step to reduce Indoor Air Pollution, drudgery faced by women, and one that promises to extend LPG access. However, little is known about the progress of the scheme. Has it led...
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