CHANDIGARH: Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Saturday announced 300 units of free power every month to domestic consumers from July 1.
But there is a rider. CM Mann said if a household consumes more than 600 units in two months it will be out of the ambit of the free power scheme and have to pay the full bill.
He went on to declare that Scheduled Caste families and freedom fighters, who were earlier getting 200 units of free power, will also get 300 units of free power a month. For them alone, only the units above the free-power limit will be chargeable, Mann clarified.
The CM also put to rest rumours that the free power scheme for farmers will end. He said subsidised power to industry too will continue.
Mann said Punjab produces power yet power is expensive in the state. Comparing Punjab to Delhi, he said Delhi purchases power from two private companies and despite that 73 per cent of the people in Delhi get free power.
The CM also waived off dues of electricity bills up to 31 December 2021 for households having a load of up to 2 kilowatts of electricity.
This was one of the first pre-poll promises made by Kejriwal on June 29, 2021, when he announced that if AAP comes to power in Punjab besides waiving the pending domestic bill payments, the party will provide free electricity to every household.
Post the announcement by Mann, Kejriwal said that the AAP in Punjab has fulfilled its first poll promise of free electricity while stressing that his party does not make false promises.
"An honest and patriotic government with clear intentions has come in Punjab. We will not allow lack of funds to come in the way of progress," Kejriwal tweeted.
AAP MLA and senior party leader Aman Arora said that Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has taken the biggest decision when it comes to power in our country today.
Till date, no government in the country has announced free electricity to such a large section of the population. With this decision, 80 per cent of families in Punjab will get free electricity.
There are a little over 73 lakh household electricity users in Punjab, of whom about 62 lakh will directly benefit from this decision.
Allaying any apprehension that some sections of society may not get the full benefit of this scheme, Arora said the rider had been added to ensure there was no wastage or misuse of electricity. If electricity becomes completely free, then it can be unnecessarily used and wasted, which will create a crisis for the country's energy system.
He went on to add that only a small per cent of the population may not get the full benefit of this scheme due to their use of ACs, coolers etc. during the summer, but even they will be covered under this scheme for the remaining 8-9 months.
It is learnt that out of around 73.80 lakh domestic consumers in the state, around 62.25 lakh consumers need less than 300 units per month.
The cost of giving free power to all is estimated at around Rs 1,300 crore per month. The state government already gives free power to farmers and 200 free units to the scheduled castes, backward classes and BPL (Below Poverty Line) families. Industry also gets power at subsided rates.
The total power subsidy is worth Rs 12,000 crore per year currently. The state has an outstanding debt of Rs 3 lakh crore.
The power demand in Punjab has already touched 8,000 MW and in the coming days, it will soar to nearly 15,000 MW once the planting of paddy begins.
Rural areas are already witnessing long power cuts. The situation in urban areas is a little better but one- to two-hour-long power cuts are a regular feature here.