The State Government will directly transfer money for payment of electricity bills to every agricultural power consumer covered under the Agriculture-Electricity Direct Benefit Transfer Scheme from the 2021-22 financial year.
Energy Secretary N. Srikant issued the guidelines for the free power scheme on Tuesday.
One aim of the scheme is to let the beneficiary know how much power is being consumed and how much money the government is paying. The amount received by the beneficiaries in their bank accounts should be paid to the electricity department. The G.O. says farmers need not spend their own money while paying power bills as the total amount would be borne by the government.
As per the scheme, ‘smart meters’ will be installed for agricultural connections wherever possible, and IRDA meters will be installed everywhere else.