By Express News Service - CUTTACK
Published: 31st January 2014 08:56 AM
Last Updated: 31st January 2014 08:56 AM
The Orissa High Court on Thursday sought reply from the Union Petroleum Ministry on the issue of insistence of oil companies for Aadhaar card linkage by consumers to avail the subsidy on LPG despite the orders of the Supreme Court.
Acting on two PILs filed by chairman of the All Odisha Consumers Protection Council KP Krishnan and one Ashok Paikray of Bhubaneswar, the division bench comprising Chief Justice AK Goel and Justice AK Ratha directed Assistant Solicitor General to submit information within a period of one week. The PILs would be taken up for hearing on February 10.
The petitioners drew attention of the Court towards public announcement made by the Union Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas through the oil companies that only those consumers who have linked Aadhaar cards to their bank accounts under the Direct Benefit Transfer for LPG (DBTL) scheme would be provided the subsidy from January 31. Those who do not have Aadhaar cards or have not linked it to their accounts will have to purchase cylinders at market price of ` 1,100 instead of the subsidised ` 425.
They alleged that the advertisements were in gross violation of the Supreme Court, which in an interim order on September 23, 2013, had issued clear directives that Aadhaar Card cannot be made mandatory for people availing any Government benefit including LPG subsidy.
The DBTL for LPG has been rolled out in four districts of Cuttack, Khurda, Puri and Balangir in the first phase since November last year. Consumers have been given the deadline of January 31 to ensure linkage of the bank accounts with the cards.
Making the DBTL linkage mandatory will pose huge problem for consumers as the State has not achieved significant success in enrolment.
As of December 10 last year, biometric enrolment of only 64.52 per cent of the population had been completed and more than 36.92 lakh of the 2.70 crore biometrics had been rejected by UIDAI.
The petitioners also pointed out that Aadhaar generation in Cuttack was only around 60 per cent, Balangir 62 per cent, Puri 67 per cent and Khurda 64 per cent.
Citing the apex court order and dismal performance in terms of Aadhaar registration in Odisha, the petitioners have prayed for directions to the Union Ministry and oil companies to desist from insisting on production of Aadhaar cards for obtaining subsidy. No citizen should be denied Government benefits for not having the card, they said.