Karnataka Govt implements Free Power

Bengaluru: Karnataka Government issued notification on free power on Tuesday. According to the notification the average power consumption of last 12 months would be calculated and 10% of that would be treated eligible for free power.

For example, if a house consumed 50 units in last 12 months, another 5 units would be added. If the consumption is 60 units then the consumer will have to pay for the extra 5 units.

The government said this was one of the main 5 promises it had made during elections.

To avail benefits of free power, citizens must register for the scheme by submitting separate applications on the Seva Sindhu portal along with other required details.

According to officials the programme will benefit maximum number of citizens without allowing anyone to misuse it. The facility will be applicable only to domestic LT consumers, not commercial LT consumers.

The notification though lacked details on whether tenants or individual apartments will be eligible. "The order says only one power connection per person will be considered for the scheme.

Officials added that those staying on rent too are eligible for the scheme. "Even though their houses will have the same customer ID as that of the owner, they have to provide their Aadhaar which will help us in differentiating."