Over four crore families in rural and urban areas will get free electricity connections by December 2018 under the “Saubhagya scheme” launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday.
The deadline for the completion of the scheme shows that the Government had the 2019 general elections in mind while announcing the Rs 16,320-crore Pradhan Mantri Sahaj Bijli Har Ghar Yojana, Saubhagya.
“Rs 16,000 crore will be spent to bring a monumental change in the lives of the poor,” Modi said while launching the scheme here.
Regretting that even after 70 years of Independence, four crore out of 25 crore families did not have access to power, Modi said all villages would be electrified by December this year, ahead of the scheduled deadline of March 2019.
“This is a reflection of working style and willpower,” Modi said and added that earlier there used to be breaking news regarding power outages and shortage of coal for power plants.
“However, now the situation has changed and the nation is moving from a scenario of power shortage to surplus,” he said.
Modi also called upon ONGC to use its Rs 100-crore start-up fund to develop user-friendly electric cooking appliances, saying it would help in reducing fuel consumption.
According to an official statement, the total outlay of the Saubhagya project is Rs 16,320 crore, while the Gross Budgetary Support (GBS) is Rs 12,320 crore. Out of this, the outlay for rural households is Rs 14,025 crore while the GBS is Rs 10,587.50 crore. For urban households the outlay is Rs 2,295 crore while GBS is Rs 1,732.50 crore. The Centre will largely provide funds for the scheme to all States and Union Territories.
The beneficiaries for free electricity connections would be identified using the 2011 Socio-Economic Caste Census (SECC) data.
However, the statement said that unelectrified households not covered under the SECC data would also be provided electricity connections under the scheme on payment of Rs 500, which shall be recovered by DISCOMs in ten installments through electricity bills.
Solar power packs of 200 wp-300 wp with battery bank for unelectrified households located in remote and inaccessible areas would be provided. These would comprise five lED lights, one direct current fan and one direct current power plug.
Beneficiaries shall be identified and their applications for electricity connections along with the applicants’ photographs and identity proofs shall be registered on the spot, the statement said.
The Gram Panchayat or other public institutions in rural areas may be authorised to collect application forms along with complete documentation, distribute bills and collect revenue in consultation with the Panchayati Raj Institutions and Urban local Bodies. The Rural Electrification Corporation limited will remain the nodal agency for the operationalisation of the scheme throughout the country.
“The Government has been working hard to electrify all villages in the country and we also want to achieve 24X7 power for all by March 2019,” the statement said.
In 2015, the Prime Minister had announced in his Independence Day speech that the Government would electrify the remaining 18,452 unelectrified villages in 1,000 days. However, the Power Ministry is expected to electrify all inhabited villages by December this year.