Himachal announces power, water freebies; AAP calls it copying Delhi model

The Himachal Pradesh government on Friday announced free electricity for households that stick to a 125-unit limit, free water in villages, and a 50-per cent rebate for women bus travellers, prompting the AAP to claim that the BJP is copying it.

Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur made the announcements at an event in the historic town of Chowgan in Chamba district to mark the Himachal Day.

The BJP-run state is scheduled to hold assembly elections in December.

Thakur said consumers using up to 125 electricity units per month will not be charged any money from July 1.

The move will benefit about 11.5 lakh consumers and cost the state Rs 250 crore every year, according to the CM. Families living in rural areas will not be charged for water, a move that will impose a financial burden of Rs 30 crore every year on the hill state.

Women travelling on Himachal Road Transport Corporation (HRTC) buses will get a 50-per cent discount. That will cost the state government about Rs 60 crore a year.

Senior Aam Aadmi Party leader Manish Sisodia claimed that the announcement by the BJP government in Himachal Pradesh was an attempt to “partially copy” Delhi’s Arvind Kejriwal government.

“They have started staging a drama of copying the Kejriwal model of governance in the state with an eye on the elections,'' Sisodia said at a press conference in Delhi.

''Everywhere they say electricity should not be free. They make fun of such freebies,” he claimed.

After coming back to power in Himachal Pradesh, the BJP will take back all the announcements that its chief minister had made, Sisodia claimed, asking people of the hill state not to ''fall in their trap''.

''Vote for the AAP in elections,'' he appealed to them. In Chamba, the CM unfurled the tri-colour and took salute from the contingents of Police, Home Guards, NCC, and NSS.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's message was also telecast on the occasion. In his message, the Prime Minister appreciated the developmental journey of the state, despite geographical and other constraints. He said that the state over these years has made tremendous progress in sectors such as power, horticulture, and tourism.

The PM said that the strengthening of road network in the state, due to the “double engine governments” was opening it to more opportunities. He said that all the Central schemes were being effectively and vigorously implemented in the hill state, and praised Jai Ram Thakur for an “honest leadership”. Modi also said that Himachal Pradesh was poised to emerge as “the most developed state of the country”. PTI DJI PK TIR VN VN