Krishak Jeevan Jyoti Yojana (Farmer Life Light Scheme), Chhattisgarh

What is Krishak Jeevan Jyoti Yojana?

Krishak Jeevan Jyoti Yojana is an electricity subsidy scheme of the Energy Department, Government of Chhattisgarh, delivered through the Chhattisgarh State Power Distribution Company Limited (CSPDCL). The scheme, whose Hindi name is Krishak Jeevan Jyoti Yojana (कृषक जीवन ज्योति योजना), pays the state's share of the electricity bill on agricultural irrigation pump connections so that small and medium farmers can run their pumps without a large power bill.

Irrigation is the largest recurring energy cost on a Chhattisgarh farm. A 3 HP submersible pump run for a few hours a day through a rabi season can consume several thousand units. Krishak Jeevan Jyoti Yojana absorbs that cost up to a published annual ceiling, and the farmer sees the deduction printed on the CSPDCL bill rather than receiving cash.

Main features

• The subsidy is a state subsidy on the electricity tariff, not a cash transfer to a bank account.
• Two routes exist: a metered annual free-unit entitlement, and a flat rate per horsepower per month for consumers on the flat-rate tariff.
• CSPDCL applies the subsidy automatically on the agricultural connection; the farmer does not file a yearly claim.
• The Energy Department reimburses CSPDCL for the subsidised amount from the state budget.

How much electricity does Krishak Jeevan Jyoti Yojana cover?

Under the metered option, the published entitlements are:

Consumption above the slab in a financial year is billed at the normal agricultural tariff. The allowance does not carry forward to the next year.

Under the flat-rate option, the farmer pays a fixed monthly amount per horsepower instead of paying per unit. The rate published for the scheme is Rs 100 per HP per month for a first pump of up to 3 HP, with a higher per-HP rate for a second pump and for pumps of larger capacity. Farmers should confirm the current flat rate for their category at the CSPDCL distribution centre, because tariff orders of the Chhattisgarh State Electricity Regulatory Commission are revised each financial year.

Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe farmers are treated separately: the annual unit ceiling does not apply to them, so their agricultural pump consumption is subsidised without the 6,000 or 7,500 unit cap.

Who is eligible for Krishak Jeevan Jyoti Yojana?

You can get the subsidy if:

• You are a resident farmer of Chhattisgarh.
• You hold a sanctioned agricultural (irrigation pump) electricity connection from CSPDCL in your name.
• The pump is used for irrigating your own agricultural land.
• Your connection is active and not disconnected for arrears.

You cannot apply or are not eligible if:

• You have no agricultural connection, a domestic connection running a pump does not qualify for the agricultural subsidy.
• The connection is commercial or industrial, or the pump load is being used for a business such as a rice mill, brick kiln or water supply to third parties.
• The pump load is unauthorised. An extension taken without CSPDCL sanction or a load higher than the sanctioned HP.
• The connection stands permanently disconnected or the consumer is in long-standing default.

There is no separate income test published for the scheme. Eligibility is decided by the nature of the connection, not by a family income certificate.

What documents are required?

How to apply for a Krishak Jeevan Jyoti Yojana connection

Existing agricultural consumers do not apply for the subsidy, it is applied to the bill by CSPDCL. Farmers who do not yet hold an agricultural connection should follow these steps:

1. Collect your papers, land record (khasra or B-1) for the field to be irrigated, Aadhaar card, a photograph, Chhattisgarh residence proof and the technical details of the pump you intend to install.
2. Go to your CSPDCL distribution centre for the area, or open the new-connection service on the CSPDCL portal at web.cspdcl.co.in, and fill the application for a new agricultural pump connection stating the horsepower.
3. Pay the prescribed application and estimate charges and keep the receipt. CSPDCL issues a demand note after a site survey of the distance from the nearest line.
4. Get the line drawn and the meter installed. The junior engineer of the distribution centre inspects the installation and energises the connection.
5. Check the first bill. Once energised, the agricultural tariff and the Krishak Jeevan Jyoti subsidy apply automatically. Confirm that the bill shows the subsidy deduction and the correct sanctioned horsepower.

How to apply offline through the distribution centre

1. Visit the CSPDCL distribution centre or sub-division office covering your village with the documents listed above.
2. Submit the new agricultural connection form to the junior engineer or the revenue assistant and obtain a dated acknowledgement.
3. Follow up with the same office for the survey, demand note and energisation.

Village-level help is also available through the gram panchayat secretary and through the agriculture extension officer, who can point you to the correct distribution centre.

How do I check my bill and subsidy status?

1. Open web.cspdcl.co.in and use the bill-view or "Pay Bill" service.
2. Enter your BP number (consumer number) exactly as printed on the bill.
3. Read the bill breakdown, units consumed, the agricultural tariff, the state subsidy deducted, and the net amount payable.
4. If the subsidy line is missing or the horsepower is wrong, take a printed bill to the distribution centre for correction.

The CSPDCL mobile app offers the same bill view for a saved BP number, which is convenient for checking each month without visiting the office.

Why does the subsidy sometimes not show on a bill?

• The connection is recorded under the wrong category, a pump billed as domestic or commercial gets no agricultural subsidy. Ask for a category correction at the distribution centre.
• Sanctioned load is wrong. A 5 HP pump recorded as a higher load falls outside the slab. A load-correction application fixes this.
• The annual entitlement is exhausted — after 6,000 or 7,500 units, the remaining consumption is billed normally.
• Meter is faulty or unread and the bill has been raised on an average basis. Apply for a meter test.
• Arrears and disconnection, a connection under permanent disconnection does not draw subsidy until it is restored.

Most of these are resolved by a written application at the distribution centre with a copy of the disputed bill and the land record attached.

Where do I complain about a Krishak Jeevan Jyoti Yojana bill?

• Distribution centre / sub-division office: first stop for billing, category and load corrections.
• Executive Engineer, CSPDCL division office, for complaints the sub-division has not settled.
• Consumer Grievance Redressal Forum (CGRF) of CSPDCL. The statutory forum for unresolved billing disputes.
• Electricity Ombudsman, Chhattisgarh. The appellate authority above the CGRF.

Applying for a new connection and receiving the Krishak Jeevan Jyoti subsidy costs nothing beyond the notified CSPDCL charges. No agent can charge a fee to "get your subsidy sanctioned". The subsidy is computed by the billing system, not granted case by case.