Middlemen, fake apps surface for Gruha Jyothi scheme

With technical glitches making it difficult to register for the Gruha Jyothi scheme, there have been incidents where middlemen or agencies have approached people to get their applications filed provided they were ready to pay them.

Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar in a tweet, asked people not to fall for it as they can apply for the scheme easily without any help from middlemen. He also warned of legal action against those involved in such activities.

The Energy Department, in a statement, warned officials at the Bangalore One, Karnataka One, and other centres from demanding extra money for registrations. Fake mobile applications have also been making rounds, misleading people, the Bescom officials said.

Also Read | Gruha Jyoti: Karnataka govt sees 55,000 registrations on Day 1 for scheme to avail 200 units of free power

The officials have asked people to register for the scheme either at government centres or through the Seva Sindhu portal and not to install any mobile applications. “The registrations have to be done only on the Seva Sindhu portal. The department has not released any mobile application regarding this,” Bescom said in a statement.

Gruha Jyothi scheme offers free electricity up to 200 units based on the consumption of each household. Though the registrations for the scheme started six days ago, a large number of people have been complaining that they are not able to get through the system. Long queues also continue at the Bangalore One, Karnataka One, and other centres where people can apply.

Power tariff hike not linked to scheme: CM

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Energy Minister K J George tried to convince a delegation of the Federation of Karnataka Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FKCCI) on Friday that the hike in power tariff has nothing to do with the Gruha Jyothi free electricity scheme.

An FKCCI delegation, led by its president B V Gopal Reddy, held talks with Siddaramaiah and George.

"It is wrong to think that the burden of the Gruha Jyothi scheme has been put on others,” Siddaramaiah said.

The CM clarified that the hike was not his government's decision. The Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission (KERC) took the tariff hike decision even before Congress came to power. However, Siddaramaiah assured the delegation that an appropriate decision would be taken after holding separate meetings with the Finance and Energy Departments.

The delegation urged the government to reduce the electricity tax from 9% to 3% levied on small and medium industries and high-tension industries. It also requested a discount on fuel escalation charges and an MSME policy akin to other states.

During his meeting with representatives from KASSIA, Siddaramaiah said a meeting will be convened to discuss the issues of MSMEs.

A statement from the Chief Minister's Office said: "The previous government has Rs 11,000 crore due for payment to Escoms. Those dues will have to be cleared by us. Also, Siddaramaiah said the financial indiscipline of the previous BJP government has to be resolved."