It has been almost a month since Aam Aadmi Party won the Punjab Assembly Elections and formed the government. One of the main promises that AAP’s Chief Arvind Kejriwal had made to the people of Punjab was that they would get 300 units of free electricity every month. The tariff for electricity for this year has been announced, and there is no sign so far that the government has any plans to fulfil the pre-poll promise.
On April 5, it was reported that the newly elected Bhagwant Mann-led Punjab government has not put up the request to the Punjab State Electricity Regulatory Commission (PSERC) to provide subsidies to the consumers. PSERC has kept the tariff similar to the last year in its tariff order for 2022-23. The average cost per unit in the state stands at Rs 6.48 like last year.
If any request for the subsidy had been made to the regulator, the average cost per unit would have increased, but it is not the case. The previous Congress government had also announced subsidies that ramped up the PSPCL bill to Rs 13,929 crores. If AAP’s scheme is implemented, the bill will go as high as Rs 21,000 crore, the experts told The Tribune.
Even with the net revenue expected to be Rs 36149.60 crores in the year 2022-23, there will be a gap of Rs 88.05 crores that would be carried forward to be adjusted at the time of tariff determination in the financial year 2023-24.
The Promises made by AAP
AAP has been talking about free electricity in Punjab for a long time. It was one of the first promises it had made since the party started campaigning in Punjab. The promise can be traced back to June 29, 2021, when AAP’s national convener Arvind Kejriwal announced that not only the old domestic bills will be waived off, but the AAP government, if elected in Assembly elections, would provide 300 units free to every household without any discrimination.
To be noted, he had claimed his government was providing 24×7 uninterrupted power in the national capital. Interestingly, AAP’s Delhi Government was found selling electricity in the national market when there was an alleged shortage of coal, and AAP leaders were blaming the BJP-led central government for the possibility of a blackout in Delhi.
The manifesto announcement did not mention 300 units
When Kejriwal announced the manifesto for Punjab, he only mentioned free electricity but skipped the promise of 300 units. He only said that the AAP government would provide 24×7 electricity and free units without mentioning how many units each household in Punjab would get.
The additional pressure of Rs 20,000 crores
Experts believe that with over 13,000 crores worth of financial support to all women above the age of 18 in Punjab and free electricity that would raise the bill by over 5,000 crores, the debt-ridden state will be in deep trouble. The total freebie bill may go beyond Rs 20,000 crores per annum which is not going to be easy for the state government.
Interestingly, Bhagwant Mann has already put up a demand of Rs 50,000 crores for two years to the central government during a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Anchor- पंजाब में वादे कर दिए, पैसा केंद्र सरकार से चाहिए?
— AAP (@AamAadmiParty) April 7, 2022
CM @ArvindKejriwal– वो किसका पैसा है?
Anchor- Public का पैसा है।
केजरीवाल- अपना पैसा ही लेने गए थे। केंद्र के पास Punjab, Delhi, UP सब की Public का पैसा है। Bhagwant Mann जी कहने गए थे कि पंजाब की पब्लिक का पैसा दे दो। pic.twitter.com/4Ua7AKaGGe
In a recent interview, when Kejriwal was questioned when they announced freebies, why they were asking for money from the centre, he said, “It is Punjab’s money. We only requested to give back the money of the people of Punjab.”
