Rehan Qayoom Mir
Srinagar, Oct 27: The Jammu and Kashmir government has said it does not propose to initiate a fresh re-verification of Below Poverty Line (BPL) and Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) beneficiaries, as the process is already being continuously carried out by the Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs (FCS&CA) department.
In a written reply to MLA Ghulam Ahmad Mir, the Power Development Department (PDD) clarified that no separate re-verification drive is required to identify genuine power consumers under subsidized categories.
The department said that consumers registered under the BPL category continue to receive subsidized electricity tariffs in line with the tariff order issued by the Joint Electricity Regulatory Commission (JERC) for Jammu and Kashmir, upon production of a valid BPL certificate.
The reply further stated that load categorization and tariff rates are determined on the basis of the electrical load at consumer premises rather than ration card categories, with JERC issuing subsidized rates for eligible sections.
On infrastructure development, the government clarified that underground power cabling in tourist destinations like Kokernag and Verinag “is not planned at present,” and no such proposal is currently under consideration.
The PDD also said that uninterrupted power supply (zero curtailment) is being ensured for fully metered areas with feeder losses below 15 percent, subject to maintenance shutdowns and unavoidable technical constraints.
