Zupda Vijlikaran Yojana (Jhumpda Vijalikaran Yojana)
Zupda Vijlikaran Yojana gives a free domestic electricity connection to a poor household living in a hut or slum in Gujarat. Running since 1996-97 under the Energy and Petrochemicals Department, the scheme had connected 10,09,736 households up to November 2025. Rural applicants apply at the Taluka Panchayat, urban applicants at the municipality.
| Ministry | Energy and Petrochemicals Department, Government of Gujarat, executed through Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam Limited and the four distribution companies |
|---|---|
| Benefit | A free household electricity connection for slum and hut dwellers, with the connection cost borne by the state government |
| Maximum benefit | Full cost of the domestic service connection (no cash is paid to the beneficiary) |
| Application mode | Offline — rural applicants apply through the Taluka Development Officer or Taluka Panchayat office, urban applicants at the municipality or municipal corporation, and the application is forwarded to the zonal office of the distribution company |
| Official website | https://guvnl.com/ |
What is Zupda Vijlikaran Yojana?
Zupda Vijlikaran Yojana, also written Jhumpda Vijalikaran Yojana, is a Gujarat scheme that gives a free domestic electricity connection to a family living in a zupda. A hut; or in a slum settlement. It has been running since 1996-97 under the state's Energy and Petrochemicals Department.
The problem it solves is specific. A household in a slum can usually afford the monthly electricity bill; what it cannot afford is the one-time cost of getting connected. The service line, the meter, the deposit and the associated charges. That upfront cost is what keeps slum households on kerosene or on unsafe hooked connections. Under this scheme the state pays that cost, and the family gets a legal, metered domestic connection.
Delivery has changed hands once. The scheme was first implemented by the Gujarat Electricity Board; after the 2003 power sector restructuring the Board was split into four distribution companies; DGVCL, MGVCL, PGVCL and UGVCL, which have run the scheme since. It is steered at state level by the Additional Chief Secretary, Energy and Petrochemicals Department, and executed through the Chief Engineer (Technical) at Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam Limited (GUVNL).
Scale, as reported by the Gujarat government in December 2025
- 10,09,736 slum households connected up to November 2025.
- 1,52,466 households electrified in the five years to 2025, at a cost of Rs 8,499 lakh.
- Rs 1,617.03 lakh spent in 2024-25, giving 25,939 connections.
- Rs 1,617 lakh allocated for 2025-26.
Who is eligible for Zupda Vijlikaran Yojana?
You can apply if:
- You live in a hut or slum dwelling in Gujarat, in a rural or an urban area.
- Your household is Below Poverty Line, or is otherwise a poor household within the income ceiling notified for the scheme.
- Your dwelling has no existing legal electricity connection.
- You can produce identity and residence proof for the dwelling.
The Energy Department has stated that the scheme benefits both BPL families and other poor slum-dwelling families without any caste-based discrimination, so community or category is not a test here.
On income limits, the position has moved. The state set ceilings of around Rs 47,000 for rural and Rs 68,000 for urban households in 2018, and government statements in December 2025 report the ceiling being raised to Rs 1.50 lakh to widen the scheme's reach. Because the applicable ceiling is fixed by government resolution and revised from time to time, confirm the figure in force with your Taluka Panchayat or municipal office before you get an income certificate made.
You are not eligible and cannot apply if:
- Your household already has a legal electricity connection, or had one that was disconnected for non-payment. The scheme funds new connections for the unconnected, not reconnections of defaulters.
- Your household income exceeds the ceiling in force.
- You do not live in a hut or slum dwelling, a pucca house with a normal municipal address is served by the ordinary new-connection process, at the usual charges.
- You live outside Gujarat. This is a state scheme funded from the Gujarat budget.
- You are seeking a commercial or agricultural connection. Only a domestic service connection is covered.
What documents are required?
| Document | Mandatory | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Aadhaar or election card | Yes | Identity of the person in whose name the connection is issued |
| Residence proof for the dwelling | Yes | Ration card, election card, or a Talati / ward office certificate |
| BPL card or income certificate | Yes | Establishes eligibility against the ceiling |
| Passport size photograph | Yes | For the connection application form |
| Landowner consent or NOC | No | Asked for in some settlements |
| Neighbouring connection's bill | No | Helps the discom identify the feeder and pole |
How to apply for Zupda Vijlikaran Yojana
There is no online form for this scheme. Applications go through the local body, which is what allows the state to certify that the applicant genuinely lives in a hut or slum dwelling.
- Decide which office applies to you. If you live in a rural area, go to the Taluka Development Officer or the Taluka Panchayat office. If you live in a town or city, go to the municipality or municipal corporation office.
- Ask for the free connection application under Zupda Vijlikaran Yojana and fill it in with your name, the dwelling's location and your household details.
- Attach the documents; Aadhaar or election card, residence proof for the dwelling, BPL card or income certificate, and a photograph.
- Submit the application and take a dated receipt. The local body records the application and forwards it to the zonal office of the distribution company serving your area.
- Wait for the discom's site survey. Company staff visit to check the dwelling, identify the nearest pole and confirm that no connection already exists at that address.
- Receive the connection. Once sanctioned, the distribution company lays the service line and installs the meter at government cost, and the household starts receiving normal domestic bills from that point.
How to check the status of your application
- Go back to the office where you applied; Taluka Panchayat or municipal office — with your receipt, and ask on what date the application was forwarded to the distribution company.
- Then approach the zonal or sub-division office of your discom: DGVCL in south Gujarat, MGVCL in central Gujarat, PGVCL in Saurashtra and Kutch, UGVCL in north Gujarat, quoting the forwarding date and your name.
- If the file is not traceable at either end, ask the local body to issue a fresh forwarding letter rather than filing a duplicate application, which only creates two files for one dwelling.
Why applications get held up
- A connection already exists at the address in the discom's records, often in a previous occupant's name.
- Income above the ceiling in force for the year.
- Residence proof does not match the dwelling. The ration card address and the actual hut location differ.
- No pole or line near the settlement, so the connection needs network extension work that has to be budgeted separately.
- Annual budget exhausted. The scheme runs on a fixed yearly provision, and a valid application may wait for the next year's allocation rather than being rejected.
- Land or occupancy dispute over the plot on which the hut stands.
What the scheme does not cover
Three limits are worth stating plainly, because they cause most of the disappointment around this scheme.
Free connection is not free electricity. The government pays for the service line, meter and connection charges. Once the meter is live, the household gets normal domestic bills and must pay them; non-payment leads to disconnection like any other consumer.
No cash is paid to the beneficiary. The benefit is delivered as work done by the distribution company, so there is nothing to be credited to a bank account and nothing an agent can arrange for a fee.
It does not regularise land. Getting a connection under this scheme does not by itself give the occupant any title or right over the land the hut stands on.
Where to get help
- Taluka Development Officer / Taluka Panchayat office: rural applications and status
- Municipality or municipal corporation office, urban applications and status
- Zonal or sub-division office of DGVCL, MGVCL, PGVCL or UGVCL, survey, sanction and installation
- Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam Limited (GUVNL), guvnl.com, the state holding company that coordinates the scheme
No fee is payable for a connection under Zupda Vijlikaran Yojana. If a lineman, contractor or agent asks for money to arrange a free connection, report it at the discom's sub-division office.
Documents required
Frequently asked questions
What does Zupda Vijlikaran Yojana give?
Zupda Vijlikaran Yojana gives a free domestic electricity connection to a household living in a hut or slum. The state government bears the cost of the connection, so the family does not pay the usual service connection charges; the monthly consumption bill is still the family's own responsibility.
Who is eligible for a free connection under this scheme?
Poor families living in huts and slums in Gujarat, both Below Poverty Line households and other low-income slum dwellers. The Energy Department states that the scheme applies without caste-based discrimination, so it is open to all communities that meet the income and dwelling test.
How many households have received connections?
10,09,736 slum households had received free connections up to November 2025, according to the state government. Of these, 1,52,466 were electrified in the five years to 2025 at a cost of Rs 8,499 lakh.
Where do I apply?
Rural applicants apply at the Taluka Development Officer or Taluka Panchayat office; urban applicants apply at the municipality or municipal corporation office. The local body forwards the application to the zonal office of the distribution company that serves the area.
Which company will give the connection?
One of four state distribution companies — DGVCL, MGVCL, PGVCL or UGVCL — depending on where you live. The Gujarat Electricity Board was restructured into these four companies in 2003, and they have implemented the scheme since then under Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam Limited.
Is the electricity itself free?
No. The scheme covers the cost of giving the connection, not the cost of the units consumed. After the meter is installed the household receives normal domestic bills and is expected to pay them.
Who cannot apply?
Households that already have a legal electricity connection cannot apply, and neither can families whose income is above the ceiling notified for the scheme or who do not live in a hut or slum dwelling. The scheme is limited to Gujarat.
When did the scheme start?
In 1996-97, under Gujarat's Energy and Petrochemicals Department. It is one of the state's longest-running welfare schemes and has continued through the 2003 restructuring of the electricity board.
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