Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has promised to give 200 free units of electricity to eligible households by March or April 2025. He said this during a media talk in Srinagar. The plan is to help reduce the financial burden on residents, but it will only work if all homes have electricity meters. “We can only provide 200 free units if we achieve complete metering,” he explained.
Abdullah also talked about the current power shortages in the region. He admitted there are still power cuts, even though they are providing more electricity, around 1,700 to 1,800 megawatts. The problem is that demand is higher than supply.
He mentioned that finishing ongoing power projects will help solve this issue. Once these projects are done, they can store extra power in the summer to use in the winter, which will make things better.
The Chief Minister also spoke about high power losses in the area, which are over 50 percent. In other states, losses are around 20 percent. He said they need to reduce their losses to that level.
Regarding unexpected power cuts, Abdullah explained that these usually happen during maintenance work. He advised the department to announce the schedules for these interruptions.
