Bihar government's free electricity plan is 'historic', says JDU's Sanjay Kumar Jha

Patna (Bihar) [India], July 17 (ANI): JD(U) MP Sanjay Kumar Jha on Thursday called the Bihar government's decision to provide free electricity up to 125 units "historic", and said that every household in the state will be connected to a solar energy source within the next three years.
Speaking to ANI, Jha said the government took the step keeping the poor in mind.
"The Chief Minister has announced 125 units free. Today, 100 per cent of the houses in Bihar are electrified. Electricity is reaching there. The government has taken this decision, especially considering the poor. In the next three years, the government will connect every house to solar. So it will have a big benefit," he said.
Jha also said that electricity production in Bihar has increased significantly under Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's leadership.
"This is a historic decision. When Nitish Kumar formed the government, 700 MW of electricity was produced here. There was no electricity for even an hour in the villages. There was electricity for 7-8 hours in the cities and today the electricity production in Bihar has increased by 12 times to 8500 MW," he added.
Taking a swipe at the opposition, Jha said, "The work of the opposition is to oppose, those who are saying they could not provide 2 hours of electricity."
Ahead of Bihar elections, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar today announced that eligible domestic consumers across the state will receive up to 125 units of electricity free of cost starting August 1, a move set to benefit around 1.67 crore families.
Kumar said that the government has also decided to install solar power plants on the rooftops or in nearby public places for domestic consumers within the next three years.
He stated that the government has also decided to install solar power plants on the rooftops or in nearby public areas of domestic consumers within the next three years.
"We have also decided that in the next three years, with the consent of all these domestic consumers, solar power plants will be installed on their rooftops or at nearby public places to provide benefits," The Bihar CM added.
"Under the Kutir Jyoti scheme, for extremely poor families, the state government will bear the entire cost of installing solar power plants, and for the rest, the government will provide appropriate support. This means domestic consumers will no longer have to bear any cost for electricity up to 125 units, and at the same time, it is estimated that within the next three years, up to 10,000 megawatts of solar energy will be available in the state,' Kumar's post reads.
This announcement came as a move to woo voters ahead of the state assembly elections due later this year. (ANI)