Free electricity: Kejriwal govt takes a giant step towards equitable growth

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal last week rolled out a free lifeline electricity scheme, under which, households using up to 200 units of electricity in a month in the national capital will not have to pay the electricity bill. The users consuming electricity above 200 units but less than 400 units in a month will continue to get 50% subsidy on their bills. This scheme is likely to benefit about one-third of electricity consumers during the summers and more than two-thirds of consumers during winters.

In his first election campaign, Arvind Kejriwal had famously asked: “Should poor people not drink water just because they can’t afford to pay the water bill?” Now, parallels can be drawn for electricity which has come to define much of urban civilization as we know it.