BENGALURU: As the deadline for verification for the Gruha Jyothi scheme -- free electricity up to 200 units -- ended on September 30, officials of various Escoms (electricity supply corporations) appealed to the State government to grant a 15-day extension as the verification process of all beneficiaries in the state has not been completed.
They also sought an extension as staffers will no longer visit individual houses for verification, but consumers will have to visit sub-divisional offices with the required documents. In many cases, particularly in Bengaluru Electricity Supply Company Limited (Bescom) limits, houses were locked or consumers were not cooperating in sharing information immediately, they claimed.
Less than 90% of the verification process has been completed in all Escom jurisdictions, barring Bescom and Mescom where 99 per cent of the process is complete. According to Bescom data, there are 68,86,860 beneficiaries, and verification of 68,41,651 consumers has been completed, which also includes 5.48lakh consumers who have refused to continue with the guarantee scheme. This is the last chance for consumers to get themselves included in the scheme, failing which they will be deleted from the beneficiary list, an official said.