The government has ordered state-run oil companies to raise the prices of subsidised cooking gas by Rs 4 per cylinder every month, Union Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said on Monday. The move is an attempt to eliminate subsidies by March 2018, PTI reported.

In July 2016, the government had asked Indian Oil, Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum to raise rates of subsidised Liquefied Petroleum Gas by Rs 2 per cylinder, excluding Value Added Tax.

“The government has again authorised oil marketing companies to continue to increase the effective price of subsidised domestic LPG by Rs 4 per cylinder effective June 1, 2017, per month till the reduction of government subsidy to ‘nil’, or till March 2018, or till further orders, whichever is earliest.”

Oil companies have raised prices twice since the May 30 order. On July 1, LPG prices were increased by Rs 32 per cylinder.