Dawn Punjab Bureau / Chandigarh :  Haryana Power Minister, Sh. Ranjit Singh has launched the first of its kind ‘Demand Side Management-AC Scheme’ in the state for the domestic consumers of urban and rural areas to promote energy savings. Under this, 1.05 lakh ACs will be made available at a discount of up to 59 percent of the Minimum Retail Price (MRP) to the people of the state, for which those interested will have to apply by 24 August 2021.

The Power Minister said that the Power Department has tied up with three well-known companies including Deccan, Blue Star and Voltas, which will provide electricity cost saving split ACs of 1.5 ton capacity at low cost on demand of the people. Under this, domestic consumers can buy an AC in exchange for their old one. While on one hand these companies will provide discount on buying new and replacing old ones, on the other hand the Haryana Government will also provide subsidy on the ACs. To take advantage of this scheme, interested persons can apply by visiting the electricity department’s web portal https://acreplacementscheme.uhbvn.org.in.

Ranjit  Singh said that under the leadership of Chief Minister, Sh. Manohar Lal, the State Government has made a provision to give more subsidy to the consumers of rural areas than the consumers of urban areas under this scheme. Under this, a subsidy of Rs 2,000 will be given on buying a new AC in urban areas and Rs 4,000 on replacement of the old AC. Similarly, in rural areas, a subsidy of Rs.4000 will be given for buying a new AC and Rs.8,000 on replacement of old AC. Apart from this, consumers will also get savings in electricity bill because of the power saving capacity of the new ACs. By installing these energy saving new ACs, 657 power units will be saved in comparison to the old 3 star ACs and there will be annual savings of up to Rs 5,000. Along with this, the compressor will get a warranty of up to 10 years and all other equipment up to one year. Under this scheme, the entire responsibility of fitting free ACs in the homes of the consumer will be of the authorized dealer.

  Additional Chief Secretary, Power Department, Sh. PK Das said that today this AC scheme has been started by the power distribution corporations to reduce the domestic energy consumption and maximum load, which is the first of its kind in the country. People should come forward to take advantage of this scheme. Under this scheme, 68 MU of energy will be saved in the state by using the above AC units and there will be a reduction of 75.6 MW in power demand. He said that earlier in 2016, under a scheme, the Power Department had installed 1.56 crore LED bulbs and 2.30 lakh tubes in the state. The state has also saved 232.42 MW of electricity, which in itself is an indicator of historical change.  Managing Director, Bijli Vitran Nigam, Sh. Shashank Anand, said that due to the tireless efforts of Haryana Power Corporations, AT&C losses have come down from 29.83 percent to 14.55 percent in the last five years. This means that the losses of the Power Department are reducing and the more the Power Department becomes profitable, the cheaper will be the cost of electricity for the people of the state. In order to provide 24 hours electricity to the entire state on the lines of supply in urban areas, the corporations have implemented the ‘Mhara Gaon Jagmag Gaon’ scheme, under which till now 5287 villages of the state are being provided 24 hours electricity.

Chairman, HERC, Sh. R K Pachnanda, Managing Director, HVPNL, Sh. TL Satyaprakash and other senior officers were present.