Punjab may fall into debt trap due to the provision of free electricity: Power Minister RK Singh

New Delhi: Power Minister RK Singh on Sunday warned states like Punjab, which provide free electricity, of falling into the debt trap. He emphasized that such schemes are only effective when a state has sufficient funds. Singh also emphasized that power generation has costs, and if a state provides it for free, it must also ensure the generating plant pays, as without payment, electricity production ceases.

Singh stated that he has been telling the states that electricity is not free. "If any state wants to provide free electricity to any category of people, it can do so, but they will have to pay for it," he said. He said that states that already have a lot of debt are also resorting to such populist measures, and they are having to take more loans to pay for the power plants. Due to this, they are trapped in a debt trap.

When he questioned the names of the states doing this, he named Punjab. He said that the AAP government in Punjab borrowed Rs 47,000 crore in the first two years, increasing the state's debt burden. He stated that if the matter is not addressed, there will be no money to develop roads, hospitals, and schools for future generations since all revenue generated will be used to repay the debt.