Ending ‘VIP culture’, officials to pay electricity bills from July 1

In a bid to end the ‘VIP culture’, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on June 17 announced that Ministers and government officials will have to pay for their electricity consumption.

“We are ending the VIP Culture 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. Beginning July 2024, all public servants will have to pay for their own electricity consumption,” Assam CM wrote in a post on X.

Additionally, the Chief Minister emphasised the State’s commitment to energy conservation, explaining that they have launched a programme to automatically disconnect electricity at all government offices, except for the CM Secretariat, Home, and Finance Departments, at 8 p.m.

This initiative aims to reduce electricity consumption, and it has already been implemented in 8,000 government offices, schools, and other institutions throughout the State. ”Our aim is to gradually move all Govt establishments to solar power and we are exploring beginning this work from our medical colleges and universities across the State,” Assam CM added.

First Civil Secretariat to meet electricity needs from Green Energy

The Assam Secretariat on June 16 became the country's first green State Government headquarters with the inauguration of a 2.5 MW solar power project on its campus, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said.

Installed at a cost of ₹12.5 crore, the grid-connected rooftop solar power plant will save ₹30 lakh in electricity bills every month, he said while addressing the official programme here.

"Today, we took a giant leap forward in our goal to become a Net-Zero Govt, as I inaugurated a 2.5 MW Solar Project in Janata Bhawan, making #AssamGreenSecretariat, India's first Green Secretariat," Mr. Sarma said in a post on X after the function.

From now onwards, the secretariat complex will run entirely on solar power, resulting in savings of ₹30 lakh every month on electricity bills, he added.

The Chief Minister also said the government has decided that all official complexes will be fitted with solar panels, beginning with the medical colleges and universities across the State.

After implementing all these steps, which will result in saving of cost and power both, the State-run Assam Power Distribution Company Ltd. (APDCL) will explore the possibility of reducing power tariff by Re 1 from April 1, 2025 to provide relief to consumers, he added.