India implements new LPG subsidy and booking rules

Starting October 1, 2026, significant regulatory changes will affect LPG consumers in India. The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas has mandated biometric Aadhaar authentication to qualify for the ₹210 per cylinder subsidy. Consumers who fail to complete this eKYC process will still receive gas deliveries but must pay the full market price without the government subsidy. Approximately 89.9% of consumers have already completed this verification.

Additional changes include a standardized 25-day minimum interval between cylinder bookings for both urban and rural consumers, replacing the previous 45-day rule for rural areas. Monthly price revisions by oil marketing companies will also continue based on international crude oil rates.

In a separate regional development, the Jammu and Kashmir government has approved a plan to provide six free LPG cylinders annually to families under the Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) scheme. This initiative aims to support approximately 8.79 lakh economically vulnerable families through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) to their linked bank accounts.