Assam CM Takes Bold Step: Officials to Pay Electricity Bills from July 2024
In a significant move against VIP practices, the Chief Minister of Assam, Himanta Biswa Sarma, announced on Sunday that the government will put an end to the practice of providing free electricity to its ministers and bureaucrats. Starting in July 2024, all officials, including CM Sarma himself, will be responsible for paying their own electricity bills.

electricity bills
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CM Sarma announced this decision on the social media platform X, offering to lead the change by paying for his own electricity usage from July 1, setting an example for his colleagues and other state employees.

The Chief Minister's post on X stated, “We are ending the #VIPCulture rule of paying electricity bills of Government officials using tax payer money. Myself and the Chief Secretary will set an example and start paying our power bills from July 1 onwards.”

Financial Impact of New Electricity Policy

This change in policy is expected to alleviate some of the financial burdens on the state's power board. Starting from the specified date, all state employees and officials will have to bear their electricity expenses, as mentioned by CM Sarma in a video accompanying his post.

In addition, CM Sarma mentioned the implementation of a new system to automatically cut off power supply at 8 pm in all government offices, except for key departments such as the CM Secretariat, Home, and Finance. This system has been put in place in over 8,000 state-run offices, educational institutions, and other facilities. The Chief Minister expressed that the ultimate goal is to transition all government buildings to solar energy, beginning with medical colleges and universities throughout Assam.

Recently, during an event at the state Secretariat complex, CM Sarma inaugurated the Janata Bhawan Solar Project. This initiative aims to promote the use of renewable energy and includes a 2.5 MW solar PV system installed on buildings and on the ground within the complex. The project is expected to generate approximately 300,000 units of electricity monthly and recover its ₹12.56 crore investment within four years.

With this project operational, the Assam Secretariat complex is set to become the first civil secretariat in India to operate entirely on solar power for its daily operations.

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