Subsidised LPG refills face mandatory Aadhaar checks from October

Indian households have until October 1 to link their domestic gas connections to their biometric ID or risk losing their government subsidies, the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas has announced.

The new rule makes biometric Aadhaar authentication mandatory for any consumer wanting to book LPG cylinder refills at subsidised rates. The government says the sweep is designed to clean up the distribution network by weeding out duplicate accounts and stopping cheap domestic cylinders from being illegally diverted to commercial and industrial buyers.

For the vast majority of consumers, the deadline will pass without any disruption. According to ministry data, roughly 27.43 crore active domestic LPG users—nearly 90 per cent of the market—had already completed the biometric check by September 19.

Those who have not yet linked their accounts have several ways to do so before the October deadline. Delivery drivers can process the biometric scans on their mobile phones during a drop-off, or customers can visit their distributor's showroom. Alternatively, they can complete self-verification at home using the official apps of the state-run oil marketing companies: IndianOil ONE, HelloBPCL, or HP PAY.

Consumers who choose not to undergo the biometric check can still buy gas, but they will lose their subsidies. They will have to register this preference through their oil provider's digital channels and purchase cylinders at full market rates. These non-subsidised purchases may also be restricted to 5 kg or 10 kg cylinders, depending on local stock.

The government's push to plug leaks comes as under-recoveries mount for state oil companies, which sell domestic gas below cost. Accumulated losses on domestic LPG reached more than Rs 62,000 crore by the end of August 2026. To cushion the blow, the government is paying these companies Rs 30,000 crore in compensation across the 2026 and 2027 financial years. In September 2026, the implicit subsidy stood at roughly Rs 210 per 14.2 kg cylinder, down from a peak of Rs 721 in June.

Global expansion plans for Aadhaar

While New Delhi tightens its grip on domestic distribution, the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) is plotting a major international expansion of the system.

Speaking at the Global Fintech Fest, UIDAI Chief Executive Saurabh Vijay said the authority is developing policies to open up Aadhaar to Overseas Citizens of India (OCIs) and non-resident Indians (NRIs) to help drive foreign investment.

"The focus now is on making Aadhaar international," Vijay said, noting that proof-of-concept trials are already underway to test how the system can work across borders.

Currently, the rules for overseas Indians are cumbersome. While NRIs with valid passports have their 182-day residency requirement waived, they still cannot apply online and must visit an enrolment centre in India in person. For OCI cardholders, the barrier is higher: they are treated as resident foreign nationals and must physically reside in India for at least 182 days out of the previous year before they can even apply.

The UIDAI is also upgrading its security to cope with its growing scale. Chairman Neelkanth Mishra said at the same event that the authority is deploying artificial intelligence to combat fraud, particularly through "liveness tests" on face and thumbprint scans.

According to Mishra, daily Aadhaar authentications have recently jumped from 7 crore to 10 crore. The authority is now rebuilding its systems to handle up to 30 crore authentications a day as the platform eyes a global footprint.