Over 4 million consumers apply for Delhi govt's electricity scheme subsidy

More than 40 lakh of the national capital's 57.60 lakh domestic power consumers have applied for subsidies under the Delhi government's free electricity scheme till Tuesday, government data showed.

The data also showed 47 lakh consumers received subsidies when consumers didn't need to apply for the scheme.

The Delhi government revamped its subsidy scheme to make it mandatory for domestic consumers to apply to avail of the benefit. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had earlier announced that from October, only those consumers who apply for power subsidy would get it.

As of Tuesday evening, 40,28,915 consumers have applied for the subsidy. These include 9.88 lakh consumers of BSES Yamuna Power Limited, 18.28 lakh BSES Rajdhani Power Limited consumers and 11.28 lakh Tata Power Delhi Distribution Limited consumers. Another 13,882 consumers under the New Delhi Municipal Council area have also applied, the official figures revealed.

"Only those consumers who submitted their applications till November 15 will get the subsidy for October. Applications filed after November 15 will be considered for December and subsequent months," a senior government officer said.

More than 37 lakh consumers had opted for subsidy up to November 15.

The last date to apply for the subsidy was earlier set at October 31. Over 35 lakh consumers had applied for the scheme by the last date, which was later extended to November 15.

Of the 47 lakh consumers who received subsidies earlier, nearly 30 lakh used free electricity up to 200 units per month. The government provided 50 per cent subsidy (up to Rs 800) to around 16-17 lakh consumers with monthly consumptions of 201-400 units.

Any consumer who fails to apply for the subsidy can get it from the next bill cycle after submitting an application.

For the current financial year, the Delhi government has set aside Rs 3,250 crore for the subsidy scheme. The amount earmarked for the scheme in 2021-22 was Rs 3,090 crore.