1.67cr homes to get 125 units of free power: CM

Time of India

4 days ago

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Patna: CM Nitish Kumar on Thursday announced that the state govt will provide 125 units of free electricity to 1.67 crore domestic consumers from Aug 1. He added that financial assistance will be extended to poor and eligible households opting to install solar panels under the Centre's PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana.
The announcement was made through the CM's official social media handle. "We have decided that all domestic power consumers will get 125 units of free electricity from Aug 1 this year. That is, they will not have to pay for 125 units of electricity from the bill of July. It will benefit 1.67 crore families in the state," Nitish said.
The initiative is expected to increase the state's subsidy burden, which already stands at Rs 15,995 crore for the current financial year.
The provision of free power will add several thousand crores to the state's expenditure.
To mitigate the financial impact, the govt plans to promote solar energy use under both the Bihar Kutir Jyoti Yojana and the PM Surya Ghar scheme, which provides a 50% central subsidy for the installation of rooftop solar panels and associated equipment.
Explaining the plan further, Nitish said, "We have also decided that the consent of these domestic power consumers will be taken for installing solar panels on the rooftops of their houses, or on nearby public land, to give them the benefit of solar energy."
He added, "Under the Kutir Jyoti Yojana, the govt will bear the cost of installing solar energy equipment for extremely poor families and the govt will also provide proper financial assistance to the remaining ones."
Highlighting the long-term energy goals, the CM said, "As a result of this, the domestic consumers will not have to bear the cost of 125 units of electricity and in tune with the same as much as 10,000MW of solar energy will be available in the next three years."
Currently, the state provides a power subsidy to all domestic and several other categories of consumers. The new policy will build on that support, while gradually shifting towards sustainable and decentralised energy sources.
While political comparisons have been made in the past regarding free electricity promises, the CM, in his statement, refrained from responding to any such proposals made by opposition leaders. He reiterated that Bihar has historically aimed to provide affordable electricity rather than making it entirely free.
"Right from the beginning, we have been making electricity available to all at cheaper rates," Nitish said, maintaining that the current decision aims to balance affordability with sustainability.