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—saubhagya-yojana [2026/08/26 23:38] (current) – created - external edit 127.0.0.1
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 +{{htmlmetatags>metatag-keywords=(saubhagya yojana, saubhagya scheme status, free electricity connection, rdss discom connection, electricity connection for poor)&metatag-description=(Saubhagya is complete and closed: what an un-electrified household does in 2026 — the DISCOM route, RDSS support and the RTI for stuck connections.)&metatag-title=(Saubhagya closed — how to get power now)}}
 +
 +====== Saubhagya — what it was, and what to do now (2026) ======
 +
 +{{ :social:auto:saubhagya-yojana.png?direct&1200 |Saubhagya — what it was, and what to do now (2026) — RTI Wiki}}
 +
 +<WRAP info>
 +**Quick Reply:** Saubhagya, the free household electricity connection scheme launched in 2017, is **complete and closed to new applications** — the government's own releases say all sanctioned works finished, and saubhagya.gov.in now runs only as a progress dashboard. If your household still has no connection in 2026, the live route is your **DISCOM** under the Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme, plus targeted programmes for tribal, SC and border villages.
 +</WRAP>
 +
 +===== What Saubhagya achieved =====
 +
 +The Sahaj Bijli Har Ghar Yojana, launched October 2017 by the Ministry of Power, connected un-electrified rural and poor urban households — by the government's account, sanctioned works were completed and effectively all willing households were covered. Under the scheme-era design, the connection came with a meter, service-line wiring, LED lighting and, for poor households listed in the SECC-2011 survey, no charge at all; general-category un-electrified households paid a nominal sum recoverable in instalments from bills. [[https://saubhagya.gov.in|saubhagya.gov.in]] today is a monitoring dashboard — state-wise progress, DISCOM dashboards, orders and circulars — not an application counter.
 +
 +If a website or agent offers a "Saubhagya application form" for a fee in 2026, it is not a government service.
 +
 +===== The 2026 route to a connection =====
 +
 +  - **Your DISCOM is the door.** Every distribution company runs a new-connection process — application at the section office or the DISCOM's online service, documents (Aadhaar, residence proof, photograph, wiring completion for the premises), survey, then connection. Consumer categories carry published timelines; low-load domestic connections are the fastest.
 +  - **Subsidised and free connections still exist for identified households** — DISCOMs continue to prioritise BPL and identified households under state schemes and central support routed through the **Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme (RDSS)**, the Ministry of Power's reform programme running to March 2028.
 +  * **Tribal and remote households** — the Dharti Aaba Janjatiya Gram Udyog Yojana (DA-JGUA) funds electrification in tribal-majority villages; PM-AJAY covers Scheduled Caste-majority habitations; the **Vibrant Village Programme** covers border villages.
 +  * **Off-grid where the grid cannot reach** — small solar home systems under ministry programmes continue for remote hamlets.
 +  * **Stuck legacy file?** If a connection was sanctioned under Saubhagya-era records but never installed, that file lives with the DISCOM — and the RTI route below finds it.
 +
 +===== If your application is stuck =====
 +
 +DISCOMs are public authorities — the RTI Act applies to them and to the state energy department:
 +
 +<code>
 +1. Status of my new-connection application no. ___ dated ___ as on today.
 +2. The survey report on my premises dated ___, and the officer who
 +   conducted it.
 +3. Reasons for delay beyond the Commission's notified timeline for
 +   my consumer category.
 +4. The estimated cost communicated to me and its calculation sheet.
 +5. The date by which the connection will be energised, and the name
 +   and designation of the officer responsible.
 +</code>
 +
 +Point it at the DISCOM's PIO; draft it with the [[https://righttoinformation.wiki/tools/ai-rti-draft-app.html|AI RTI Drafter]].
 +
 +===== After the connection — bills, meters, complaints =====
 +
 +  * **Meter disputes** — apply for meter testing at the DISCOM's designated lab; a wrong reading found gets the bill corrected and the testing fee refunded.
 +  * **Supply quality and outages** — the state electricity regulatory commission runs a consumer grievance mechanism: first the DISCOM's **CGRF** (Consumer Grievance Redressal Forum), then the ** Electricity Ombudsman** appointed by the regulator.
 +  * **Helplines** — the national power grievance short-code **1912** operates in many states alongside DISCOM toll-free lines; where 1912 is not live, the DISCOM's own number is on every bill.
 +  * **Subsidy and arrears** — state subsidy schemes run through the DISCOM billing system; check eligibility on the DISCOM portal, not third-party sites.
 +
 +===== Papers to keep for any route =====
 +
 +  * The DISCOM application acknowledgement with its number and date — every later step keys off it.
 +  * The survey report and the cost estimate the section office communicated.
 +  * Receipts of every payment against the official estimate — never a payment to a person.
 +  * The SECC-2011 or state survey reference, where your household's omission from an old list is the issue — the RTI above is how you obtain that record.
 +
 +===== Frequently asked questions ====
 +
 +==== Can I still apply under Saubhagya? ====
 +No — the scheme's sanctioned works are complete and it takes no new applications. Apply to your DISCOM directly.
 +
 +==== I never got a connection though my village was electrified. ====
 +Village electrification and household connection are different. Apply to the DISCOM now; if the SECC-era survey wrongly omitted you, the RTI above surfaces that record.
 +
 +==== Is the connection free in 2026? ====
 +Depends on your category and state — identified poor households have subsidised routes; general applicants pay the published estimate. Ask the DISCOM for the category test in writing.
 +
 +==== Agent demanding Rs 5,000 to "expedite". ====
 +Pay only the DISCOM's official estimate against a receipt; report the agent to the CGRF and the vigilance cell.
 +
 +===== Related =====
 +
 +  * [[/housing-basic-needs-schemes-india|Housing and basic-needs schemes]]
 +  * [[/ujjwala-yojana|Ujjwala LPG guide]]
 +  * [[/pmay-2026-complete-guide|PMAY complete guide]]
 +  * [[/how-to-apply/start|How-to-apply guides]]
 +  * [[/book|The RTI Playbook]]
 +
 +===== Sources =====
 +
 +  * Ministry of Power / PIB releases on Saubhagya completion and residual household electrification (2025-26).
 +  * [[https://saubhagya.gov.in|saubhagya.gov.in]] — dashboard and orders.
 +  * Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme, Ministry of Power, running to March 2028.
 +
 +//Last reviewed: 27 August 2026.//
 +
 +{{tag>saubhagya electricity-scheme rural-electrification 2026}}