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Ending 2013 by keeping yet another poll promise, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) State Government announced a 50 per cent cut in power tariff for households using up to 400 units in Delhi.
It also announced plans to order an audit into the finances of the three private power distribution companies – BSES Yamuna, BSES Rajdhani (Reliance Infra companies) and TPDDL (a Tata company).
The decision to subsidise power tariff involving a cash outgo of Rs 61 crore in the next three months was announced by the new Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, after a meeting of his Cabinet here on Tuesday.
The subsidy is one of the 18 promises made by AAP during the Assembly elections and is expected to benefit 28 lakh consumers. Questioned about the subsidy only for three months, Kejriwal said a further decision on this would be made after the audit report.
A BSES source said the Delhi Government was a stakeholder in the discoms and if they had taken a decision, the company would abide by it.
Reliance Infrastructure has 51 per cent stake in BSES, while the Delhi Government holds 49 per cent stake in the BSES companies, which run two utilities covering two-thirds of the National Capital.
Meanwhile, Kejriwal said the cabinet would meet on Wednesday after the three companies submit their views on the proposal for audit of their finances. “Only after studying their replies we will take a decision whether to audit or not,” he said.
When asked whether the Government had the right to decide on slashing power tariff when a regulator was there, Kejriwal said the Government could provide subsidy.
On Monday, the AAP government announced 20 kilo litres of free water a month for households having metered water connection.
New Speaker Meanwhile, ending political speculation, AAP named Maninder Singh Dhir, its MLA from Jangpura, as the party candidate for the post of Speaker in the Delhi Assembly.
Kejriwal made the announcement to the media outside his residence here even as BJP and Congress had been reticent about disclosing their strategy.
The Speaker’s election is scheduled to take place on January 3, a day after the trust vote to be sought by the Government in the Assembly whose first session starts on Wednesday.
In the 70-member Assembly, AAP has 28 MLAs, eight short of a majority required to get its nominee elected. The AAP has the support of eight MLAs of Congress party.
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