The government plans to save Rs 8,000 crore to Rs 10,000 crore annually on subsidy expenditure towards liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) following the partial roll out of Direct Benefits Transfer (DBT) scheme.

The government recently decided to provide subsidies on cooking gas cylinders by crediting the amount directly in the bank account of beneficiaries in 20 districts across the country.

To enable the operation of this scheme, consumers of LPG in these districts will have to link the Aadhaar number with their bank accounts. They have three months, starting June 1, to do so or lose their entitlement.

All LPG consumers would get an advance in their bank account as soon as they booked the subsidised cylinder, even before delivery.

The direct benefit transfer (DBT) is aimed at curbing leakage of subsidies that the government provides on cooking gas cylinders and preventing black-marketing.

There are 140 million LPG consumers in the country. So, the first step is a small one, said Vivek Rae, Secretary, ministry of petroleum and natural gas.

The 20 districts comprise five in Andhra, four in Himachal, two each in Karnataka, Kerala and Madhya Pradesh, one each in Daman and Diu, Goa, Maharashtra, Puducherry and Punjab.