Chhattisgarh govt launches free power scheme for farmers

The free power that the Chhattisgarh government will give to the farmers will cost Rs 132 crore to the state exchequer per annum. The state cabinet late last evening decided to give free power to the farmers from October 2. The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had promised free power to the farmers using irrigation pumps upto 5 Horsepower (HP) in the election manifesto for the state polls held in November last year.

“The government has decided to launch the scheme from October 2,” state’s irrigation minister Hemchand Yadav said. The eligible farmers will get 6,000 units of power free per year, Yadav said, adding that if the consumption is beyond the free units, farmers will have to pay Re 1 for every additional unit.

The free power scheme of the Chhattisgarh government will, however, cost Rs 132 crore annually to the state exchequer, sources said. The state government will, however, continue to collect the irrigation pump connection fee from the farmers. Sources said the farmers have been paying Rs 20 per HP as irrigation pump fee now.

The state cabinet also approved the proposal to start paddy procurement in the state from October 12. The state government has fixed the minimum support price (MSP) for the paddy varieties. While the farmers selling “A” grade paddy will get Rs 980 for a quintal, the government will give Rs 950 per quintal for B grade paddy. Chhattisgarh government has set a target of procuring 3 million tonnes of paddy following severe damage caused to the crop due to erratic and scanty rainfall across the state. Last year, the state government had procured 3.7 million tonnes of paddy at the minimum support price (MSP).