(a) the efforts made by the Government till date to provide cheap electricity to farmers in the country;
(b) whether Government has formulated any concrete policy to provide cheap electricity to farmers; and
(c) if so, the details thereof and the measures proposed to be taken to address this issue?
THE MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) FOR POWER AND
NEW & RENEWABLE ENERGY
( SHRI R. K. SINGH )
(a) to (c) : Electricity is a concurrent subject. Supply and distribution of electricity at an affordable rate to all the consumers including farmers, in a State / UT falls within the purview of the respective State Government / State Power Utility. The Government of India supplements the efforts of the State Governments through various measures for improvement in power sector and to provide electricity at affordable rates. The generation, transmission and distribution of electricity have a cost and in order for the supply to be sustainable the cost has to be recovered. If a State Government wants to provide cheap electricity to farmers in the country, then the State Government will need to meet the costs of the power supplied.
The State Government can give subsidy to any class of consumers including farmers, to the extent they consider appropriate as per provision of Section 65 of the Electricity Act, 2003 as well Clause 8.3 of the Tariff Policy. There is no provision to give free power to farmers by the Union Government.
***********