evidence: The Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas, Shri RameswarTeli in a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha today informed that the Government launched Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) in 2016 to provide clean cooking fuel to poor households and the target to provide 8 crore deposit free LPG connections was achieved in September, 2019. To cover remaining households under PMUY, Ujjwala 2.0 was started on 10th August, 2021 on pan India basis to provide additional one crore LPG connections along with free first refill and stove. As on 01.03.2022, OMCs have released 1 crore LPG connections under Ujjwala 2.0. Further, the Government has approved to release of additional 60 lakh LPG connections under Ujjwala 2.0 on existing modalities. State/UT-wise details of LPG connections released under PMUY as on 01.03.2022 since inception of the Scheme are at Annexure. Further, Government has taken several other steps to ensure that all households in the country have access to clean cooking fuels, which include hassle free connections, 5 kg cylinders, secondary connections for an existing domestic LPG consumer, option to apply online for new connection including PMUY and release of e-subscription vouchers, organizing LPG panchayats and public awareness campaigns involving State/UT Governments, etc. [...] Number of Connections released