CAG Flags ₹42 Cr Lapses in AAP Power Subsidies; Delhi Assembly Debates!
CAG Flags ₹42 Cr Lapses in AAP Power Subsidies; Delhi Assembly Debates!
A recent CAG report reveals ₹42.26 crore in discrepancies within AAP's Delhi power subsidy scheme. Dive into the financial irregularities, opposition concerns, and the Monsoon Session's stormy start. #DelhiPolitics #CAGR
The Monsoon Session of the Delhi Assembly kicked off with immediate controversy, as the Opposition, led by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), vocally criticized the absence of a Question Hour. AAP MLA Sanjeev Jha expressed frustration, highlighting that legislators had submitted questions without the opportunity to raise them in the House.
Amidst the debate, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government tabled a significant Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report. This audit scrutinizes the previous AAP regime's power subsidy scheme, covering the period from 2019-20 to 2022-23. The report flags several glaring discrepancies, most notably ₹42.26 crore in subsidies extended to domestic consumers who recorded no electricity consumption over consecutive billing cycles.
Further analysis by the CAG revealed an uneven distribution of subsidies. Consumers with higher electricity consumption received substantially larger subsidies per connection. For instance, while over 30 lakh consumers using up to 200 units monthly received an average annual subsidy of about ₹6,000, around 16.60 lakh consumers consuming more than 200 units received an average of over ₹10,000, nearly 70% higher.
The report also showed a significant increase in the cost of the power subsidy scheme, which surged from ₹2,405.59 crore in 2019-20 to ₹3,161 crore in 2022-23. This expenditure accounted for a substantial portion of Delhi’s total subsidy budget, ranging from 66.96% to 70.39% during the review period.
Beyond power subsidies, the audit uncovered other financial irregularities, including tax and fee discrepancies amounting to ₹220.59 crore across 145 cases. Additionally, the report highlighted ₹29.45 crore as "unfruitful" expenditure by the Delhi State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation. This amount was spent on land acquired in 2006 in south-west Delhi’s Baprola for a proposed Gems and Jewellery Park and Fashion Design Hub, which has evidently not yielded its intended results.
In a separate development during the session, the House also passed a Motion of Thanks on the Delhi Lakshmi Yojana, a government initiative providing ₹2,500 in financial assistance to women, with over 4.87 lakh women reportedly registered.
